“Can my course be CPD accredited?”
“Who certifies CPD?”
“Which body regulates it?”
These are the questions that training providers ask again and again. And they’re fair questions — in most professional contexts, there’s a regulator, an authority, or a single standard-setter.
But here’s the surprise: no one regulates CPD.
CPD as the DNA of lifelong learning
CPD isn’t an add-on or a badge you buy. It’s the way professionals across sectors — healthcare, finance, IT, education, beauty, and beyond — show they are keeping skills up to date.
Because CPD runs through so many different industries and job roles, it can’t be boxed up under a single regulator. Just as there’s no global regulator for “education,” there’s no single authority for CPD. It’s embedded in the DNA of lifelong learning itself.
Why people think there is one
If CPD has no regulator, why does it so often feel as if there is?
Partly because certain organisations have built their business models around looking official. They use logos, seals, and familiar language to create the impression that they are the authority.
To make matters more confusing, there isn’t just one of these companies. There are several, with strikingly similar names and similar offers. Training providers are left wondering: Which one is the real one? The answer, of course, is none of them.
They aren’t regulators. They’re companies selling a service. And the confusion works in their favour: if providers believe CPD accreditation has to pass through them, they pay.
The confusion works in their favour: if providers believe CPD accreditation has to pass through them, they pay.
What gets lost in the smokescreen
This illusion of central authority does more than confuse. It risks shifting attention away from what actually matters in professional development:
- Clarity of learning — the aims, skills, and outcomes.
- Evidence of delivery — who taught, how, and when.
- Recognition that lasts — a record learners can use in their CVs, portfolios, and careers.
When the focus is on paying a body to rubber-stamp a course, learners and employers miss out on real transparency. Providers lose time and money. And the credibility of CPD as a whole is undermined.
So who decides?
The truth is that providers decide — through how clearly they structure and evidence their training. Employers and professional bodies also play a role, by recognising learning that is well-designed and well-documented.
That’s why self-accreditation, done properly, isn’t a shortcut or a loophole. It’s the only model that fits the reality of CPD as a principle embedded across every profession.
Closing thought
There is no regulator. No single certifying body. Only organisations that market themselves that way.
And that leaves us with a choice: do we continue to hand control to those who profit from the confusion, or do we return to what CPD was always meant to be — the transparent recognition of learning that changes not just careers, but lives?
About the Author
Marta Kalas is the Founder & CEO of Open CPD, where she is transforming how training and events gain recognition and credibility. With over 25 years of experience in healthcare and technology, she combines practical insights with a mission to make accreditation accessible, flexible, and impactful.
She also writes The Recognition Gap, her personal LinkedIn newsletter on lifelong learning, CPD certificates, and digital badges.
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