Round Up Spring 2019

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competence If you can’t record your CPD straight after the activity took place, I recommend you make a note of it somewhere so you can refer to it at a later date and retain evidence of the activity (for example any notes you’ve taken or handouts). An accredited body can ask that you enhance your records. Do everything you can to get it right first time. Relevance We’re often asked how many hours of CPD a mortgage adviser should record. There’s no definitive answer, it’s something that should be agreed between the adviser and their supervisor, but I’d recommend a minimum of 15 hours (or for a mortgage and protection adviser, 15 hours for mortgages, and 15 hours for protection), although some firms state 35. Whatever’s decided, it should be confirmed in your firms T&C Scheme.

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Whether it’s proactive, or reactive (perhaps in response to a client enquiry or change in legislation) all CPD counts, as long as it’s relevant. CPD is one way to ensure you’re maintaining and enhancing your knowledge and skills. Many business owners advise, and are also their firms Money Laundering Reporting Officer (CF11) and Compliance Oversight (CF10). In these cases we often see CPD recorded in relation to their advisory role, but invariably not in respect of their other roles. We see similar occurences when advisers provide advice in several specialist areas, such as pension transfers, long term care, and equity release. I recommend occasionally reviewing what you’ve recorded to ensure it reflects all of your role(s). Number of hours Most people are required to record a total of 35 hours (21 of those structured) in each 12 month period. This doesn’t mean that CPD should stop once you’ve fulfilled this requirement. ‘C’ stands for ‘continuing’. It’s best practice to keep going.

Since 1 October 2018 individuals involved in insurance distribution activities are subject to a minimum of 15 hours CPD in a 12 month period. The point to note is the 15 hours is not in addition to those individuals subject to the 35 hours requirement, it’s inclusive of. Supervisors Supervisors should review their staff’s records thoroughly. When reviewing one to one meeting forms, we often see supervisors noting that their staff have recorded a sufficient number of hours, but nothing else. Supervisors should look beyond the number of hours recorded and instead consider their relevance (referring back to a development plan). Reflective statements should be reviewed, in particular where there’s relevant evidence of insurance related CPD activity. Dependent on the frequency of one to one meetings, supervisors may need to review the records more frequently. Having access to records 24/7 will help. threesixty’s CPD recording facility allows registered supervisors to access the records of their colleagues at any time.

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