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1. Introduction
   1. With ever-changing legislation, it is essential that Members keep up to date, and also advance their skills. This is recognized in Article 5 of the Code of Professional Conduct which requires all Members to comply with the rules set out below. This is to ensure that Members maintain a high standard of professional practice as well as protect the interests of their clients and of the Society.
   2. Members of the Society must be prepared to meet the obligations necessary to enable them to uphold the reputation of the Society and to provide the best possible service to their clients.
   3. The Continuing Professional Development (CPD) scheme was introduced in April 1997. There are exemptions for some Members and flexibility in the way the CPD requirements can be met (see Paragraph 3 below).
   4. The CPD scheme is structured to meet the following objectives:
      1. To be relevant to the needs of Members in their professional lives.
      2. To be flexible enough to cater for particular circumstances (e.g., a career break; maternity leave).
      3. To be capable of being fulfilled in large measure without research or reading that is outside the normal usual activity of the different practitioners.
      4. It is not administratively burdensome.
2. The Basic Requirements
   1. The minimum requirement is 35 hours per CPD year, of which 15 hours must be structured training as defined below. The CPD year commences annually on April 1st and ends on March 31st in the following calendar year. For Members joining part way through the CPD year, CPD will apply on a pro-rata basis for the proportion of the year since becoming a Member.
   2. At the end of the CPD year the self-certification form should be completed by the Member and retained with the Member's CPD record forms for a minimum of six years. Members will confirm that they have completed their annual CPD requirement by signing the declaration on the Membership subscription remittance advice issued in March each year.
3. Exemptions
   1. The following Members will be exempt from CPD requirements to the extent stated if they fall within any of the following categories for all or part of a CPD year:

      Membership Circumstances	Membership Category	CPD Requirement (Structured)	CPD Requirement (Unstructured)
      1.   Temporarily engaged in other full-time work	Secondee	None	30
      2.   Non-earner, e.g. ill health, career break, redundancy, maternity leave	Non-earner	None	30
      3.   Retired and not in receipt of remuneration for any advice or work connected with trusts and/or estates	Retired	None	None

      Claims for exemption should accompany each annual renewal of membership.
      4.   Discretion to grant exemption is reserved by the Council of the Society.
   2. Where Members come within any of the above categories for only part of a CPD year the exemption will apply for that part only, on a pro-rata basis where appropriate.
4. Definition of Structured Training
   1. Attendance at conferences, seminars, workshops, discussion meetings or similar events involving active contributions.
   2. Preparation of lectures or other forms of presentation.
   3. Writing books, articles or reviews.
   4. All learning media involving interaction with other individuals or completion of interactive printed material by an authorised provider, whether or not in conjunction with video support (including group research; listening to audio tapes; viewing videos and television programmes; using video discs and computer-based training packages).
5. Definition of Unstructured Training
   1. Reading.
   2. Research.
   3. Any other form of learning where there is no interaction with other individuals. This would include the use of learning media in 4.4 above where undertaken on a personal basis.
6. Non-core Subjects
   1. Structured and unstructured training must of course relate to the field of trust and estate work.
   2. It is nevertheless appreciated that Members must often keep up to date on the related topics of law, accounting, banking and financial services. Accordingly, while at least 10 structured CPD hours must be specific to trusts and estates, CPD on these related topics qualifies as long as it accounts for no more than 50 per cent of the required CPD.
7. CPD Requirements of other Professional Bodies
   1. It is understood that Members of the Society may also be Members of other professional bodies having CPD (or its equivalent) requirements or recommendations.
   2. It is recognized that a single activity, such as attendance at a conference, may satisfy the CPD requirement of more than one professional body simultaneously.
8. CPD Requirements of Professional Firms
   1. Some professional firms have their own CPD requirements and these too may be fulfilled simultaneously.
   2. If the professional firm's CPD requirements are for a year end of other than March 31st, the appropriate year for that particular firm which ends in the CPD year in question can be used instead, as long as the requirements of the Society are met on a "year to year" basis.
9. Conference Providers
   1. Conference providers normally self-assess on an hourly basis, subject to a maximum of six hours per day (or a maximum of seven hours for each full day of a residential conference). It is the responsibility of Members to determine that the conference is at the appropriate level. The Society organises a range of meetings and conferences. Attendance at these should enable Members to meet their CPD requirements.
10. Records to be Kept
    1. A personal record sheet can be obtained from the STEP Office. Completion of this record sheet is not compulsory but may assist in record keeping. CPD requirements will be met as long as the Member can produce records to demonstrate compliance. The self-certification form must be completed annually and retained by the Member for six years, together with suitable supporting documents.
    2. Where Members attend a training meeting (other than those organized by their own firm) where no charge is made for attendance, they must record their attendance in the record book kept by the organisers.
    3. The Society will undertake random checks by requesting some Members submit their CPD records covering a two-year period.
11. Failure to Meet the CPD Requirements
    1. If a Member fails to meet the requirements in a particular year the following should be considered:
       1. He/she will be required to achieve sufficient additional CPD hours in the following year to meet the shortfall.
    2. The Ethics and Discipline Committee will consider what further action is appropriate if a Member fails to meet these requirements.
    3. Investigation of any complaint against a Member will include a review of the Member's CPD records.