A fitness to practise CPD course does two jobs at once. If a complaint or a referral has been made about you, it is evidence of insight and remediation for your regulator; and whether or not there is a concern, it counts as CPD for your appraisal, revalidation or CPD record. This guide sets out, from each UK regulator’s own CPD pages, how a fitness to practise course counts for your CPD, how to record it, and how to write the reflection so that one piece of work serves both purposes. Our fitness to practise course is £79 (£50 with Bulk Buy 10) for 2 CPD hours, online and self-paced, and Probity & Ethics is CPD certified and accredited by The CPD Certification Service (CPD Provider No. 13197).
Facing a complaint or a referral?
Your regulator, your employer or a patient has raised a concern about your practice or your conduct. You want learning that shows insight and remediation, and you want it to count for your CPD as well.
Planning CPD, appraisal or revalidation?
You want a CPD course on fitness to practise, with a dated certificate and a reflection you can use at your appraisal, in your revalidation portfolio or in your CPD record.
In short
- Yes: a fitness to practise CPD course counts as CPD for every UK healthcare and social work regulator. How it counts depends on the scheme: towards your hours (NMC, GDC, GOsC, GCC), as one of your CPD records (GPhC, HCPC, Social Work England), as supporting information at your appraisal (GMC). For the GOC they are not GOC-approved CPD.
- Our CPD courses are online and self-paced, so they count as learning on your own: they do not count towards the NMC’s 20 participatory hours, the GOsC and GCC hours of learning with others, or the GOC’s 18 points from GOC CPD providers.
- Record the course once, in the cycle in which you completed it, with the certificate and a short written reflection: what you learned, how it applies to your practice and what you have changed.
- The same CPD course and reflection can also be evidence of insight and remediation in a fitness to practise case. Each CPD course is £79 (£50 with Bulk Buy 10) for 2 CPD hours; the modules are £49. All the CPD courses linked from this guide are by Probity & Ethics, written by Dr Shehzad Iqbal.
Does a fitness to practise course count as CPD?
Yes. CPD is learning that keeps you up to date and improves your practice, and every UK healthcare and social work regulator leaves the choice of activity to you, as long as it is relevant to your scope of practice and you can show what you learned. A course on how fitness to practise works, what your regulator’s standards ask of you and what a panel looks for in insight and remediation is directly relevant to every registered professional.
Two points decide how much it counts for. First, the type of learning: our courses are online and completed on your own, so they count as individual learning, not as learning with others. Second, your regulator’s scheme: some count hours, some count records or pieces of CPD, and some count points from their own providers. The table below sets out each one.
For any scheme, what counts is a relevant activity, evidence that you did it, and your reflection on what changed in your practice.
Fitness to practise CPD course: how it counts for each regulator
Each line is a summary of the regulator’s own CPD page, checked on 3 November 2026. Our guide for each regulator, linked from its name, has the detail and the courses that fit a concern with that regulator.
| Regulator | What the CPD scheme asks for | Where a fitness to practise course fits |
|---|---|---|
| GMC Doctors | No set number of hours or points. CPD every year across your whole practice; you reflect on what you learned and discuss it at your annual appraisal; CPD is one of six types of supporting information for revalidation. | CPD for your appraisal portfolio, with the certificate and your reflection. |
| NMC Nurses, midwives and nursing associates | 35 hours of CPD in the three years before revalidation, at least 20 of them participatory; five written reflective accounts and a reflective discussion. | Counts towards the 35 hours (not the 20 participatory hours); your reflection can be one of the five accounts. |
| GDC The dental team | Verifiable CPD over a five-year cycle: 100 hours for dentists, 75 for dental therapists, dental hygienists, orthodontic therapists and clinical dental technicians, 50 for dental nurses and dental technicians; at least 10 hours in any two consecutive years; a personal development plan and an annual CPD statement. | Verifiable CPD when the evidence meets the GDC’s requirements; you link it to a development outcome in your log. |
| GPhC Pharmacists and pharmacy technicians | Each year at renewal: four CPD records, one peer discussion and one reflective account against the standards for pharmacy professionals. | One of your four CPD records; the reflection can feed your reflective account. |
| HCPC The 15 HCPC professions | Five standards of CPD, no set hours; a random sample of each profession is audited at renewal and asked for a profile of the last two years with evidence. | An activity in your CPD record, with the certificate and a note on how it changed your practice. |
| GOC Optometrists and dispensing opticians | 36 points in the cycle 1 January 2025 to 31 December 2027, at least 18 interactive and at least 18 from GOC CPD providers, one point in each of the four domains, a peer review and a reflective exercise. | Certified by The CPD Certification Service, not GOC-approved CPD. |
| GOsC Osteopaths | 90 hours over a three-year cycle, at least 45 of them learning with others, across the four themes of the Osteopathic Practice Standards. | Learning on your own: within the 90 hours, not the 45. |
| GCC Chiropractors | At least 30 hours each CPD year, at least 15 of them learning with others, with a reflective statement for each activity in your CPD summary by 31 August. | Learning on your own: within the 30 hours, not the 15. |
| Social Work England Social workers in England | At least two pieces of CPD each registration year, each with a reflection on how it affects your practice, and a peer reflection on at least one; recorded before renewal closes on 30 November. | One piece of CPD with its reflection. |
For the hours, the two-year rule and the annual statement for each dental title, see our CPD courses for dentists and dental nurses; for nurses, CPD courses for nurses; for doctors, online CPD courses for doctors.
How to record a fitness to practise CPD course
Whatever your regulator, a CPD record needs the same core facts. Add them on the day you finish the course, while the learning is fresh:
- The activity: the course title, Fitness to Practise Course for Healthcare Professionals, the provider, and that it was online and self-paced.
- The date and the hours: the completion date and the 2 CPD hours shown on your certificate.
- Why you chose it: the learning need in your personal development plan, or the concern it relates to.
- The standard it links to: the part of the NMC Code, the GDC development outcome, the standard for pharmacy professionals or the domain your scheme asks you to name.
- The evidence: the certificate, which records the course title, the CPD hours and the date.
- Your reflection: what you learned and what you have changed in your practice (see the next section).
Record the course once, in the cycle or registration year in which you completed it. If you are taking several courses, the Bulk Buy offer brings each one to £50 when you buy 10.
How to write the reflection for your CPD and your case
Every scheme above asks for reflection in some form: the GMC at appraisal, the NMC in five reflective accounts, the GPhC in a reflective account, the GCC and Social Work England for each activity, the HCPC in an audit profile. A short reflection in four parts works for all of them:
- What I learned. The two or three points from the course that matter for your own practice.
- Why it matters. The standard it relates to, and its effect on patients, colleagues and trust in your profession.
- What I have changed. Concrete changes, with dates: how you now record, communicate, seek consent or keep a boundary with a patient or a colleague.
- What I will do next. Further learning or an audit of your own practice, added to your personal development plan.
Write it in your own words and keep it to a page. The Module on Reflection (£49, 1.5 CPD hours) works through the structure step by step, and our guide on reflective accounts for NMC revalidation has a worked example.
One CPD course for a complaint and for CPD
When a concern has been raised, the course, its certificate and your reflection are evidence of insight and remediation; the same items, unchanged, are CPD. You do not need two courses or two reflections. What differs is where you use them: in your CPD log for your appraisal or revalidation, and in the bundle you and your adviser prepare for your regulator.
For the steps after a complaint, see how to deal with a fitness to practise complaint; for a hearing, how to prepare for a fitness to practise hearing. If the concern is about one subject, such as probity, professional boundaries or record keeping, add the course on that subject: which course do I need matches each concern to its course.
Also read: Reflective Statement Workshop: Building Insight and Writing a Reflection That Holds Up.
Please note
No course can guarantee the outcome of a complaint, investigation or hearing, and each regulator decides each case on its facts. Take advice from your indemnity insurer, professional association or legal representative before you send anything to your regulator. Check your regulator’s own CPD pages for what your record must show. This guide is general information, not legal advice.
Our fitness to practise course
CPD course for every UK healthcare professional
Fitness to Practise Course for Healthcare Professionals
How fitness to practise works with each UK regulator, the question your regulator is asking, what a panel looks for at each stage, and insight, reflection and remediation, with a reflection on your own practice at the end. CPD certified and accredited by The CPD Certification Service (provider no. 13197).
- £79 (£50 with Bulk Buy 10)
- 2 CPD hours
- Certificate on completion
Courses that work alongside it
Any 3 courses for £200, 5 for £300, 10 for £500. The £49 Modules count towards the packages too. Unsure where to start? Book a free call or use which course do I need.
Guides that help
This guide is part of our Professional Misconduct hub, which brings together every Probity & Ethics guide and course on the subject.
The CPD courses linked from this guide, Fitness to Practise for Healthcare Professionals, Module on Reflection, How to Deal with a Complaint or Investigation and Professionalism for Healthcare Professionals, are by Probity & Ethics, written by Dr Shehzad Iqbal, CPD certified and accredited by The CPD Certification Service (provider no. 13197) and offered since 2020.
Questions and answers
Does a fitness to practise course count as CPD?
Yes. A fitness to practise course is a learning activity relevant to your practice, so it counts as CPD for every UK healthcare and social work regulator. Our fitness to practise course is CPD certified and accredited by The CPD Certification Service (provider no. 13197) and gives you a dated certificate with its 2 CPD hours. How it counts depends on your regulator’s scheme: towards your hours, as one of your CPD records, or as evidence at your appraisal.
Can I use the same course for a fitness to practise case and for my CPD?
Yes. The same course, the same certificate and the same written reflection can sit in your CPD record and in the evidence of insight and remediation you give your regulator. Record it once in your CPD log in the cycle in which you completed it, and keep a copy of the certificate with your case papers. Take advice from your indemnity insurer, professional association or legal representative before you send a reflection to your regulator.
How many CPD hours is the fitness to practise course?
Fitness to Practise Course for Healthcare Professionals is 2 CPD hours, online and self-paced, with a dated certificate on completion. The Modules on Insight, Reflection and Remediation are 1.5 CPD hours each.
Does an online fitness to practise course count as participatory CPD for NMC revalidation?
It counts towards your 35 hours of CPD, but not towards the 20 participatory hours, because the NMC defines participatory learning as activity that involves interaction with other professionals. Our courses are self-paced and completed on your own. Discussing the course and your reflection with a colleague, for example in your reflective discussion, is a separate activity.
Can my reflection on the course be one of my NMC reflective accounts or part of my GMC appraisal?
Yes. For NMC revalidation, a written reflection on the course, linked to the relevant part of the Code, can be one of your five reflective accounts. For a GMC appraisal, the GMC asks you to reflect on what you have learned from your CPD and how it has helped your practice, and to discuss it with your appraiser, so the certificate and your reflection go into your supporting information.
Do your courses count for GOC, GOsC or GCC CPD?
They count as CPD you complete on your own. They are certified by The CPD Certification Service, not by the GOC or any other regulatory body, so they are not GOC-approved CPD. For the GOsC they count within your 90 hours but not the 45 hours of learning with others, and for the GCC within your 30 hours but not the 15 hours of learning with others.
How much does the fitness to practise course cost?
Fitness to Practise Course for Healthcare Professionals is £79 (£50 with Bulk Buy 10), for 2 CPD hours. Any 3 courses cost £200, 5 cost £300 and 10 cost £500. The Modules on Insight, Reflection and Remediation are £49 each and count towards the Bulk Buy packages.
Sources
This guide is based on the following regulator pages, checked on 3 November 2026.
- GMC: Supporting information for appraisal and revalidation
- NMC: Revalidation, continuing professional development
- GDC: Enhanced CPD
- GPhC: Revalidation FAQs
- HCPC: Standards of continuing professional development
- GOC: Introduction to CPD and registrant requirements
- GOsC: Continuing professional development
- GCC: CPD
- Social Work England: CPD, what you need to do
