Solicitors in England and Wales have had no CPD hours requirement since 1 November 2016. The Solicitors Regulation Authority replaced the old 16-hour regime with continuing competence: you reflect on your practice, identify and address your learning needs, and then declare at practising certificate renewal that you are competent and up to date. No hours, no accredited providers, no points to collect — and, for many solicitors, a good deal more personal responsibility than the old scheme carried.
At a glance: Nexis CPD offers £9 CPD-accredited online compliance courses relevant to legal practice, with a verifiable e-certificate on passing — and any three courses cost £18.
What the SRA actually asks for
The SRA sets out a continuing competence cycle rather than a total:
- Reflect — regularly consider the quality of your practice
- Identify — work out your learning and development needs
- Plan and address — keep a plan for meeting them, and act on it
- Record — keep an up-to-date record of your learning and development
- Evaluate — judge whether the learning actually worked
The benchmark for all of it is the SRA’s Competence Statement, which describes what a solicitor should be able to do, alongside the Threshold Standard and the Statement of Legal Knowledge.
The declaration, and why it got harder
At practising certificate renewal you must declare that you have an up-to-date understanding of the legal, ethical and regulatory obligations relevant to your role, that you have reflected on and addressed any learning needs, and that you are competent to perform your role. The SRA strengthened that declaration in autumn 2024.
Read it carefully and it covers more than black-letter law. “Regulatory and ethical obligations relevant to your role” pulls in anti-money laundering, data protection, and the way you treat clients and colleagues. A solicitor who is technically excellent but has not looked at the firm’s AML obligations in three years is not obviously in a position to make that declaration honestly.
No hours does not mean no evidence
Because there is no target, some firms have quietly let records lapse. That is the risk in the new regime: the SRA can ask what you did, and a solicitor who cannot show reflection, a plan and a record has nothing to point at. If a solicitor does not confirm they meet the requirements, the SRA may impose a condition on their practising certificate preventing them from practising unsupervised.
The obligations most likely to sit outside legal knowledge
Three areas come up repeatedly in firm-level compliance, and they are the ones where general awareness training earns its place:
- Anti-money laundering. Firms carrying on relevant legal work are subject to the Money Laundering Regulations 2017, and regulation 24 requires relevant employees to be regularly trained in recognising and dealing with money laundering — with a written record of that training kept by the firm. See our guide to AML training requirements.
- Data protection. Client files are among the most sensitive personal data a business holds (see what is GDPR).
- Equality, diversity and inclusion. Fair treatment of clients and colleagues sits inside the SRA Principles, not outside them (see what is EDI).
A practical starting set
- Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Awareness — the regulation 24 training duty
- Data Protection and GDPR Awareness — client confidentiality and UK GDPR duties
- Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Awareness — the Equality Act 2010 in practice
All three together cost £18 rather than £27, because any three courses trigger the pay-for-2-get-3 offer. Add them to the cart and the discount applies automatically. Support staff and paralegals are covered by the firm’s AML training duty too, which is where most firms have the biggest gap. Accountancy practices face a similar mix of rules — see CPD requirements for accountants.
One caveat: these are awareness courses in areas around legal practice, not substantive legal training. Your reflection on substantive law and the SRA Competence Statement remains your own work.
Frequently asked questions
How many CPD hours do solicitors need?
None. The SRA removed the 16-hour annual CPD requirement on 1 November 2016 and replaced it with continuing competence. There is no hours target and the SRA no longer accredits training providers. Instead you reflect on your practice, identify and address learning needs, keep a record, and declare your competence when you renew your practising certificate.
What is the SRA continuing competence declaration?
At practising certificate renewal, solicitors declare that they have an up-to-date understanding of the legal, ethical and regulatory obligations relevant to their role, that they have reflected on and addressed any identified learning and development needs, and that they are competent to perform their role. The SRA strengthened this declaration in autumn 2024.
Do solicitors still need to keep CPD records?
Yes, in substance. The SRA's continuing competence cycle asks you to reflect, identify needs, plan and address them, record your learning and development activity, and evaluate it. There is no prescribed format or hours total, but a solicitor who cannot show any record, plan or reflection has nothing to evidence the declaration they have made.
What happens if a solicitor does not meet continuing competence requirements?
If a solicitor does not confirm that they meet the requirements, the SRA may impose a condition on their practising certificate preventing them from practising unsupervised. Because the declaration is made personally, making it without genuine reflection also raises honesty and integrity issues under the SRA Principles.
Does AML training count as CPD for solicitors?
It can form part of your continuing competence, because the declaration covers the regulatory obligations relevant to your role. It is also a separate legal duty: firms carrying on relevant legal work are subject to the Money Laundering Regulations 2017, and regulation 24 requires relevant employees to be regularly given training and the firm to keep a written record of it.
Compliance courses for law firms
£9 per course. CPD accredited, 100% online, verifiable e-certificate. Pay for 2, get 3 — any 3 courses for £18.
This article is general information, not legal advice or a statement of SRA policy. A CPD awareness course is not a regulated legal qualification and does not by itself demonstrate continuing competence. Requirements differ for barristers (BSB) and for solicitors regulated in Scotland or Northern Ireland. Always check the current rules with the Solicitors Regulation Authority.