In an unregulated sector, a scheme is only as honest as its structure forces it to be. Ours separates money from judgement at every point a judgement is made — and gives someone independent the power to overrule us.
The framework is owned by an external panel — an assessment specialist, an educator, an accessibility specialist, an employer representative and a lay member. No current commercial relationship with the scheme beyond panel fees, interests registered and published. The panel approves every change to the criteria, hears final-stage appeals and can direct investigations.
Assessment fees are payable whether or not accreditation is granted. Assessors are paid per assessment, never per approval, and have no role in sales or renewals. Moderators do not know a provider’s commercial value to the scheme. No employee is incentivised on approval rates — and we never sell consultancy on passing our own assessment.
Any refusal, condition, suspension or withdrawal can be appealed: first to an uninvolved senior assessor, then to a Standards Panel sub-committee whose decision is final. Fees are refunded if an appeal succeeds. Anyone — including learners of accredited providers — can complain about an accredited activity; substantiated complaints feed directly into surveillance.
Staff of applicant or accredited providers can report, in confidence, that evidence submitted to us misrepresents actual practice. Reports are handled outside the assessment team and can trigger unannounced spot checks.
Graduated and published: advice, conditions, suspension, withdrawal — and publication of withdrawal where learners need protecting. Misusing the mark, badging non-accredited courses or continuing use after expiry is a breach we act on. Certificate verification stays live for learners even after a provider leaves.
Every year we publish applications received, outcomes by category, refusal rate, appeals and their results, complaints upheld, sanctions issued, and every change made to the framework with the reason. A scheme that never refuses anyone is a subscription, not a standard — this report is how you hold us to that.
We accredit against a defined framework that every applicant holds in full. We are not experts in our providers’ subjects, and we do not verify that the claims, figures, legal statements or instructions in their material are correct, current or lawful — nor could any honest CPD body claim to. Standard 1.2 assesses whether a provider has a credible process for assuring its own accuracy (a credentialed expert sign-off, cited sources, a review cycle); it does not transfer responsibility for the facts to us. Under the accreditation agreement, the provider warrants the accuracy and lawfulness of its content and indemnifies the scheme. Our badge means the activity meets the CPD framework — it is never an endorsement or guarantee of what is taught, and providers may not represent it as one.