The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) will launch a radically new, greatly simplified CPD Core Curriculum in September 2011, which will ensure that architects always possess the key skills to help them to stay competent and resilient, and to protect themselves and their businesses. The move to a simplified curriculum has been long called for by members.
The previous curriculum identified thirty-one topics to be covered over five years, whereas the new core requirement centre around ten key topics, at least two hours per topic per year. The ten topics are:
- Being safe: health and safety
- Climate: sustainable architecture
- External: clients, users, and delivery of services
- Internal: professionalism, practice, business and management
- Compliance: legal, regulatory and statutory framework and processes
- Buying it: building procurement and contracts
- Constructing it: structural design, construction, technology and engineering
- Where we live: communities, urban design and planning process
- Context: the historic environment and its setting
- Access for all: universal/inclusive design
This much simplified structure will enable architects to tailor their CPD requirements to suit their area of professional expertise; the more or less detail an architect needs in their practice or daily life, the more or less detailed their CPD on core topics could be.
Members will be required to meet the following requirements:
- 35 hours of CPD input
- 100 points assigned to activities as a means of self-reflection
- At least half, where possible, should be structured
- At least 20 hours to be assigned to core curriculum topics, at least two hours per topic each year.
The new structure will also enable architects to pursue CPD to acquire new specialisms more easily, helping them to diversify and learn new skills. Our new approach allows architects to take ownership of their CPD and use it to their own ends in support of their own needs, their businesses, new areas of work, new clients and new income.
"We are very excited about this streamlined yet effective and innovative new approach to learning," said Joni Tyler, Head of CPD Policy at the RIBA. "This should help our members much more easily to stay resilient and yet to maintain basic skills at the same time. It will also help the RIBA to refine and better target its CPD offers to our members."