CPD on leave, part-time or on a career break

The position, from the published pages

The FAQ answers the leave question directly: the same 30 credits every 12 months apply regardless of your work situation. There is no pro rata figure for part-time work. The audit guidelines recognise that some people cannot provide a record because of maternity or adoptive leave, career breaks, long-term illness or other statutory leave, and allow a deferral request, decided case by case.

The audit FAQ adds the timing: a deferral can only be asked for after you have been called, you have 30 working days to send the deferral form through the portal, a decision can take up to eight weeks, approval is not guaranteed, and an accepted deferral means automatic selection in the next audit period. If a deferral is refused, the guidelines say you have 30 days to submit.

Planning around leave

• Front-load before leave where you can, so the block that leave falls in is closer to 30.
• Keep low-effort learning going if you want to: reading, podcasts and online modules count if they give new or enhanced learning.
• Write reflections before leave starts, while the detail is fresh.
• If you are called while on leave, request a deferral promptly rather than submitting a short record.

If you are registered but not practising at all, the FAQ has its own question for your situation; read that answer on the regulator's FAQ page. The general statement still stands: the 30 credits apply to everyone on the register, and the requirement follows registration rather than employment.

Coming back to work

The first weeks back are a good time for CPD that counts: new policies, changed procedures and updated guidance are all new or enhanced learning for someone who has been away. Log them as you meet them, with what changed in your practice as a result.

Look at the counter on your first day back. It shows the credits in each 12-month block of your audit period and the date you would fall under 30 on the rolling count, so you can see how much of the gap is still open and how many months are left to close it. If a block has already closed short, write a line in your review of learning needs about why, and plan the next one.

Worked example

A physiotherapist's audit period has 2 blocks: 1 October 2025 to 30 September 2026, and 1 October 2026 to 30 September 2027. She logs four activities before starting maternity leave in May 2026. The counter shows 22 credits in the first block, 8 short of 30, and that block has closed.

Nothing about her leave changes the number. If she is selected when the period ends, the leave is the ground for a deferral request. If she is not selected, the gap is still worth closing in the second block, because the next audit may look at it.

Common mistakes

• Assuming part-time work halves the requirement. It does not.
• Submitting a short record while on leave instead of asking for a deferral.
• Asking for a deferral before being called. The audit FAQ says the request comes after notification.
• Letting reflections lapse during leave for learning you did before it.
• Forgetting that an accepted deferral means you will be selected next time.

Keep your own CPD log

Reflectora logs each activity with its credits and the four reflective fields, counts your credits in every 12-month period, shows the date you would fall under 30 if you logged nothing new, and prints an audit pack in your own layout. Everything stays in this browser.

Sources

Last reviewed 28 September 2026 against:

• CPD General Questions (FAQ), CORU, page undated, read 28 September 2026. Used for: one hour of new or enhanced learning equals one credit, any fraction of an hour may be attributed, the registrant decides the credits, no carry forward, the same requirement on leave, part-time or a career break, and keeping records while on the register
• CPD Audit and Audit Deferral FAQs, CORU, page undated, read 28 September 2026. Used for: selection of a percentage of the eligible register, 30 days to submit, deferral grounds and timing, and the eligibility of people who joined mid-period
• Continuing Professional Development Audit: Guidelines for Registrants, CORU, document undated, read 28 September 2026. Used for: audit periods of 12 or 24 months, 30 credits in every 12-month period linked to the registration renewal date, what a submitted record contains, no service user or colleague identifiers, supporting documents kept but not submitted, and the two outcomes

This guide is our own summary of the published documents, not legal advice and not a finding about your application; the regulator's assessors decide. If it disagrees with the current documents, the documents win. Reflectora is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to CORU, the Health and Social Care Professionals Council, any registration board or any professional body.