Episode 106:
Hello and Welcome to the Part3 with me podcast.
The show that helps part 3 students jump-start into their careers as qualified architects and also provides refresher episodes for practising architects. I am your host Maria Skoutari and this week we will be talking about the new CPD requirements set by the ARB. Today’s episode meets PC1 of the Part 3 Criteria.
As of January 2024, all architects on the ARB’s register will be required to undertake Continuing Professional Development as a condition of registration, meaning you will not be able to re-register if you haven’t recorded or provided proof of your annual CPD.
Why has the ARB introduced this requirement for registration:
With the introduction of the Building Safety Act, it has broadened the ARB’s authority and created a duty to monitor the training and development that architects undertake and complete during their careers. Previously, ARB didn’t request this, therefore architects didn’t need to record or keep evidence of their CPD’s, unless if you are also an RIBA member which has its own CPD process. But with the Building Safety Act, in order to essentially demonstrate the architects comptence has led to the mandatory requirement by the ARB requiring architects to record their CPD in order to continue to be registered as an architect, hence the introduction of the ARB’s CPD scheme.
The scheme’s aim, therefore, is to improve the overall competence of the profession, be tailored by architects to their own practice and needs, be proportionate and deliverable and avoid duplication where possible.
Why is CPD important:
CPD helps to maintain and develop a person’s professional competence. Professionals across all sectors carry out ongoing professional development so they can improve their own practice and contribute to the collective high standards of the profession.
Given architects play a vital role in creating a built environment that is safe and sustainable, the public and users of architects’ services have a right to expect that architects will not only be competent on their first day of registration, but that they will continue to maintain and develop their skills, knowledge, experience and behaviours in whichever field of architecture they choose to practise.
And as the regulator for the architects profession, the ARB sets the education and training requirements for UK architects and sets and enforces the professional standards expected of them, which is why they have established this new framework for architects to monitor and manage their Continued Professional Development, following the changes in the law with the Building Safety Act.
So what does the ARB’s CPD scheme entail:
The scheme will focus on the outcomes carried out than the training undertaken meaning architects will be required to carry out and record their CPD activities and to reflect on the impact that their development has had on their competence and practice. The scheme focuses on four key principles:
- Improve overall competence of the profession by creating a positive shift in promoting a culture of continuing professional development focused on outcomes instead of inputs
- To be tailored by architects to their own practice and needs, encouraging architects to reflect, plan, act and evaluate their learning activities in a way that is relevant to their own practice and development needs
- Be proportionate and deliverable avoiding any additional costs for architects and be seen as an investment in their development
- Avoid duplication, such as having to record CPD on multiple platforms
The scheme will, therefore, aim to:
- Raise competence levels across the profession
- Increase public confidence in the profession
- Improve architects’ eligibility to practice in an increasingly regulated area of building safety
And each year the ARB will review and assess whether there are any areas of architectural practice that must be covered by architects through their CPD by setting mandatory topics. For example, similar to the way RIBA has 10 core mandatory topics members need to cover every year, the ARB may also choose to impose mandatory topics that architects will need to undertake CPD on, but with the ARB architects can address these topics in a way that is relevant to their practice and ARB will not dictate the type of CPD that is carried out and they will not provide training themselves for it. Unlike RIBA which sets core topics, minimum number of hours of CPD to be undertaken annually and they also provide structured CPD seminars to meet these requirements.
So, the ARB’s CPD scheme has no minimum number of activities that must be carried out, although they do suggest that architects should aim to complete at least 8 activities per year. If the ARB does choose to mandate topics, they will give good notice and publish guidance on the competence expected in those areas and they will be sufficiently broad so that any architect on the Register would be expected to understand and apply them, whatever their area of specialism or type of practice is. Examples of topics include environmental sustainability, fire and life safety design or ethics. This year between 2024-2025 the ARB has set fire and life safety and environmental sustainability as the mandatory topics.
Now, in the case of architects who have voluntarily withdrawn from the register, or for those who want to be reinstated following a forced suspension or erasure, they must demonstrate how they have maintained their competence and what they plan to do for the first CPD cycle when back on the Register. They readmittance and reinstatement application will need to include a statement detailing their current circumstances and reasons for wanting to rejoin the Register. Followed by a summary description of their current role, their CPD record log of the activities undertaken while off the Register and a personal development plan outlining what CPD they aim to complete over the next twelve months.
All registered architects will be required to comply with this scheme, including any newly registered or those returning to the register after 1 January 2024 and you will be asked to confirm that you have carried out the CPD required to be able to remain on the register. If you join the Register for the first time, you should carry out CPD appropriate to your needs, but you are not required to log your CPD activities until the new calendar year. For example, if you join for the first time at any point in 2024, you are not required to log your CPD until January 2025.
Where can architects record their CPD:
Architects will have a choice to either record their CPD on the ARB’s online CPD platform or if you are an RIBA member and already recording your CPD on their website, you can use their record as evidence for your CPD upon renewal of your registration.
Key item to bear in mind, is that a percentage of architects CPD records will be audited for quality assurance and compliance each year, so keeping up to date records will be very important. Records will be chosen randomly based on a risk-based system which includes:
- Those that have not previously been selected for audit
- Those that have deferred, for any reason, the previous year
- Those that have previously been involved in disciplinary proceedings
- Those that have previously failed to carry out their CPD
- Those that have been off the Register for a significant period
Then once audit has been completed, the architect will be informed of the outcome in terms of whether they meet the requirements, if they need to take any action or if they don’t meet the requirements. Any architect denied continued registration or removed from the Register because of noncompliance with the CPD scheme, will be informed of their rights of appeal. Or if an architect confirms during retention that they have completed their CPD records, and it is subsequently shown that they had not done so, then it would be considered a matter of dishonesty, and they would be subject to an investigation of unacceptable professional conduct.
If you generally fail to complete the record, there will be opportunities for those architects who haven’t met the required standards to take the necessary steps before they are removed from the Register of Architects.
What counts towards the CPD:
The ARB, allows architects the freedom to identify their own CPD activities and allows them the flexibility to identify the best learning style for their needs and practice. If an architect, for example, has developed professionally and can apply what they have learn to their practice, that can be considered as CPD.
CPD activities can be formal, meaning they would be structured and delivered by an external training provider, or they can be informal such as self-directed reading, colleague feedback, building tours and so on. Errors, mistakes and failures can also be considered valued CPD opportunities, whereby you can record it as a reflective activity by defining what the aim was, what went wrong, what was needed to mitigate the error and how the architect can apply what they have learnt to their future work.
What should the reflective record include:
Architects will be expected to self-reflect to identify what they have gained from their CPD by evaluating how valuable the activities have been for their practice. Architects will be expected to identify for each activity what they learned, how this is being applied to their practice and any known benefits, how this has improved their competence and what steps do they want to take next. They will also need to record the date of the activity, the topic, activity type and then the learning reflection listing the items mentioned previously.
The ARB aims to provide tools to assist architects with their reflection on the CPD they have carried out, and to help them plan for future development.
Key item to remember is that CPD will need to be recorded from the start of each year through to the point of re-registration in November or December. Architects are, therefore, encouraged to spread their activities over the 12 months to avoid the risk of non-compliance. Architects can also identify the same learning outcome from multiple activities and similarly, mulitple outcomes can be identified from one activity.
What if you can’t record your CPD:
While there is an expectation that every architect on the Register will carry out CPD, there are in some instances legitimate circumstances in which it will not be possible for some to carry out activities. In such cases architect can apply for deferment of completing their CPD records, some possible reasons for applying for a deferment are parental leave (maternity, paternity and adoption) or long-term sickness. Architects, in such situations, can apply to defer their CPD submission for one year but remain on the Register. Then if the deferment is approved the architect must submit a Personal Development Plan (PDP) which sets out how they will catch up with their CPD requirements.
Key item to note is that, those deferring may have to complete two years’ CPD in the next annual cycle and anyone who has deferred will automatically be selected for audit the following year.
To sum up what I discussed today:
- Through the Building Safety Act 2022, ARB has been given the duty of monitoring the training and development that architects complete throughout their careers
- From January 2024, all architects are required to participate in the ARB CPD scheme as a condition of registration
- The Scheme is designed to be flexible and accessible with no dictation of hourly requirements. Architects will be able to address different activities in a way that is relevant to their practice and ARB will not dictate the type of CPD that is carried out and they will not provide training themselves for it
- CPD’s can be either formal or informal
- Architects will be expected to self-reflect to identify what they have gained from their CPD by evaluating how valuable the activities have been for their practice.
- Architects will have a choice to either record their CPD on the ARB’s online CPD platform or if you are an RIBA member you can record it on their platform
- A percentage of architects CPD records will be audited for quality assurance and compliance each year
- If an architect fails to complete the record, there will be opportunities for them to take the necessary steps before they are removed from the Register of Architects
