What is Continuous Professional Development?
Continuous Professional Development, CPD, is the process of maintaining and enhancing your knowledge, skills and ability after your initial training, so you can keep up to date and current with best practice.
Aligned with our Educational Philosophy, CPD is individualised, allowing the Instructor, Coach and Leader to consider what areas they may need to develop.
Why is it important to keep your CPD up to date?
When instructing, coaching or leading, you are likely to look at your paddlers’ strengths and weaknesses, consider their aims and objectives and look at ways you can support their development. So why would we, as Instructors, Coaches, Leaders or Guides, not want to do the same for ourselves?
As part of your membership cover as an Instructor, Coach and Leader you have professional indemnity. To be entitled to have this extended cover, you need to ensure you engage in CPD, keeping you current and updated.
What counts as CPD?
British Canoeing Awarding Body’s formal qualifications and awards will count towards your CPD. When you take part in these formal courses your record will be updated automatically. Outside of these programmes, there are lots of informal opportunities that many of us will engage in without even realising it. Have you ever read an article, attended a webinar or observed someone coaching? Any these could be classed as CPD.
The great thing about CPD is that your development opportunities are directed and controlled by you. This means that you can pick the CPD that’s relevant and interesting to you, that’s delivered in a way that you find engaging and meaningful.
The CPD process makes it really easy to recognise these informal CPD opportunities, as well as making it easy to submit this information on your membership record.
How is CPD calculated?
CPD is calculated by points. There is a requirement to update your CPD by a certain date and the formal and informal development opportunities that you choose will have a points value associated to them. In order for CPD to be updated, you need to have gained 20 points prior to your expiry date.
How do I get CPD points?
British Canoeing Awarding Body training courses and awards will automatically update your record with CPD points. You can also use a range of informal learning opportunities that have an impact on your instructing, coaching or leading, such as being a mentor/having a mentor, work based annual practice/refresher training or being observed by a line manager/coach developer.
This process supports you to choose the learning that is right and relevant to your development.
The following tables show the range of CPD and their point value.
| Course Title | CPD Points |
| Personal Skills Development Courses | |
| PPA Explore and Discipline Specific Award | 10 points |
| Leadership Development Courses | |
| Paddlesport Leader Award training or assessment | 20 points |
| Leadership training or assessment (any discipline) | 20 points |
| Advanced Leadership training or assessment (any discipline) | 20 points |
| Raft Guide course (training) | 20 points |
| Raft Guide (assessment) | 10 points |
| Bell Boat Helm course (training or assessment) | 10 points |
| Coach Education Courses and Endorsements | |
| Paddlesport Instructor course (training and assessment) | 20 points |
| Coach Award course (training or assessment) | 20 points |
| Performance Coach (training or assessment) | 20 points |
| Coaching Diploma – residential attendance | 20 points |
| Discipline Support Module (any discipline) | 10 points |
| Safety Training Courses | |
| Foundation Safety and Rescue training | 10 points |
| Stadium Safety and Rescue training | 5 points – submitted through application |
| White Water Safety and Rescue training | 20 points |
| Advanced White Water Safety and Rescue training | 20 points |
| Advance Surf Safety and Rescue training | 20 points |
| Coastal Navigation and Tidal Planning training | 10 points |
| Open Water Navigation and Tidal Planning training | 10 points |
| CPD courses | |
| Foundation Module | 5 points – submitted through application |
| Intermediate Module | 10 points |
| Guide Module | 10 points |
| Paddle UK Provider Training | |
| Any Provider training or moderation | 20 points |
For the activities in the following table, you will need to upload the information on your membership record.
| CPD Activity | CPD Points | Examples of evidence |
| Structured learning – face to face | 15 points | Certificate of completion, notes, learning outcomes |
| Structured learning – distance learning | 15 points | Certificate of completion, notes, learning outcomes |
| Accredited college / university level of education or training | 15 points | Certificate of completion, notes, learning outcomes |
| Mandatory training orientations / moderations / staff training | 15 points | Letter of completion, training records, certificate of completion |
| Learning events, workshops, conferences, etc. | 15 points | Certificate of attendance, notes, learning outcomes |
| Reading and reviewing publications | 10 points | Copies of reading and reflection notes linked to practice-based outcomes |
| Enquiry based research | 10 points | Copies of reading and reflection notes linked to practice-based outcomes |
| Peer review activities | 10 points | Evidence of peer review including notes, observations and outcomes |
| Coaching and mentoring (role in ether delivery or being a recipient) | 10 points | Evidence based coaching/mentoring undertaken including letters, notes, observations and practice related outcomes |
| Structured professional observation Shadowing | 10 points | Evidence of observation, reflective practice and practice related outcomes |
| Supervised practice | 10 points | Evidence of participation, observations and outcomes |
| Group work or meetings outside of everyday coaching practice | 10 points | Evidence of participation, role within the session, notes, observations and outcomes |
| Coaching observations to different environments | 10 points | Evidence of participation, reflective notes and practice outcomes |
| Paddle UK eLearning | 5 points | Attendance certificate, reflective notes and practice outcomes |
How does this fit into the Update Scheme?
The Update Scheme follows similar principles. You will meet the Update Scheme requirements if the following are up to date:
- National Association Membership (Paddle UK, Canoe Association of Northern Ireland, Canoe Wales, Scottish Canoe Association)
- First Aid
- Safeguarding
- CPD
- Follow the Code of Conduct
Watch the CPD explanation and demonstration video here
