CPD audit preparation checklist

Keep the request and current guidance beside your records. Note the period being reviewed, the deadline, the requirements you need to address and any specified forms, evidence or submission format. Match each requested item to the material you have and list anything you need to clarify.

This gives you two tasks: check that your overall selection addresses the request, then check that each record explains the activity and learning. A clear individual record does not establish that the whole submission is complete.

• HCPC audit: follow the official CPD profile guidance. Our HCPC guide explains the context.
• NMC revalidation: this is a different process, with an approved form for written reflective accounts. See our NMC revalidation guide.

For other professions or an employer review, use the instructions for that process.

For each relevant activity, work through these questions and note a next action where needed.

1. Activity details. Is the title recognisable, and are the date, description and duration, where relevant, accurate?

   If something is unclear: check the original notes, calendar entry or attendance information. Mark details you cannot verify for further checking.

2. Your learning. Can you explain what you understood, reconsidered or became more curious about?

   If the note is vague: return to your own notes and identify one specific learning point you can support. A session title alone will not explain it.

3. Relevance. Does the record connect the learning to your role or a development need?

   If that connection is missing: explain the task, question or responsibility it relates to. Address any benefit or impact requested by your professional guidance using what you can genuinely describe.

4. Evidence. Can you open the supporting material and identify what it shows?

   If the link is broken or the file is unclear: locate the correct copy and connect it to the record. Distinguish evidence of attendance from your account of learning.

5. Actions and outcomes. Is it clear what you plan to do and what you have already tried or observed?

   If they are mixed together: label the next step as planned. Add a dated follow-up only where there is an experience or outcome to describe.

6. Final review of the entry. Does the wording reflect your experience, with appropriate information in both the note and attachments?

   If it needs correction: remove unsupported claims and unnecessary identifying or confidential information. Read the corrected version before treating the entry as reviewed.

Keep unresolved actions visible. These checks support your own review; they are not a regulator's assessment form or a compliance score.

Ask what each document supports. A certificate may show attendance, a handout may explain the topic, and your own notes may show what you noticed or questioned. A document does not establish every statement in a reflection simply because it relates to the same activity.

Use a clear filename or reference so you can find the material behind a particular point. Choose relevant evidence according to the submission instructions; you do not need to attach everything you have saved. HCPC registrants can consult its evidence guidance.

For ongoing filing, see how to organise CPD records digitally.

A professional who teaches colleagues is reviewing a workshop record. The scenario and all the notes below are fictional; they show how to review your own material.

1. Identify what the starting note leaves unclear

“Attended a workshop on giving feedback. It was useful and will improve my teaching.”

The note names the activity but does not explain the learning or how it relates to teaching. “Will improve” expresses an expectation, without saying what the professional plans to try or how they will judge whether it helps.

2. Return to the material recorded at the time

Before rewriting, the professional checks three items:

• The attendance certificate confirms the workshop title, date and provider.
• The workshop handout describes giving feedback about a specific, observable part of a task and inviting the learner to suggest a next step.
• Their own workshop notes say: “I often say ‘good explanation’ without saying which part helped. In the paired exercise I named one clear part, then asked what my partner would change. Try this in the next teaching session.”

The personal notes support the account of practising the technique. The handout alone would not establish that they took part in the exercise. None of these items shows that their teaching has improved since the workshop.

3. Write a clearer note from those details

They add the date of this review, keeping it distinct from the activity date, and write:

“Looking back at my workshop notes, I noticed that my feedback often stops at ‘good explanation’. During the paired exercise, I practised naming one specific part of an explanation and asking what the learner would change. This is relevant to the teaching sessions I lead for colleagues, where I want feedback to give people a clearer next step.

“My notes include a plan to try this in my next teaching session. I have not yet recorded whether I did so or what happened. I need to check that before adding an outcome.”

4. Keep the remaining action visible

The professional links the certificate, relevant handout and their own notes to the record. They leave a specific action: “Check whether I tried the approach after the workshop and whether I have notes about the response.” If they cannot establish what happened, they leave the outcome unconfirmed. If they have not tried it, it remains a planned action.

The record is now clearer because each added detail has a basis. It still contains an unresolved follow-up, which the professional can see and address.

Missing evidence

Check your original email, files or the provider's materials. Identify what other relevant evidence you actually have and check the instructions on what is acceptable. If a required document remains unavailable, ask the organisation requesting it how to proceed.

An unclear learning note

Return to your own notes and recollection. Explain what you can support, making clear when you are reflecting later. If you cannot confirm a detail, leave it unresolved rather than presenting a guess as fact. The reflection-writing guide can help you explore your experience.

An action you have not tried

Keep it as a next step and describe the learning you already have. If the submission asks for benefits or impact, check how you can address that requirement from your actual experience; a planned action alone may not answer it.

If you use AI to help organise the wording, check every added statement. A clearer draft must not introduce an activity, duration, discussion or outcome that you cannot support.

Find the activity and read its learning notes alongside the files connected through the Evidence Library. In the example, compare the revised reflection with the original workshop notes before approving it. Check any suggested standards links as well as the wording.

When you export, open the PDF and check that it contains the version you intend to use. A PDF is a fixed snapshot: later changes to the app record do not update an existing file. The PDF export guide explains that workflow. Use reviewed records to prepare any requested forms or profile; HandyCPD does not submit them to a regulator for you.

Return to the original request and review the assembled documents together:

• Period and requirements: does your selection cover the requested period and address the requirements, including anything beyond individual activity records?
• Forms and format: have you used the requested forms and checked any instructions on file types, length or supporting documents?
• Evidence references: can you open the files and match each reference to the correct document?
• Final versions: have you read the actual files you intend to share, checked their content and removed unnecessary identifying or confidential information?
• Unresolved questions: have you sought clarification where needed and checked the deadline and submission route?

Keep a clearly named copy of the version you submit and any confirmation you receive.

Note which parts took time to resolve. If evidence was hard to find, improve the link between files and activities. If learning notes were vague, capture a specific point soon after each activity. Our digital CPD records guide shows a routine you can use between reviews.