How to write a CPD reflection (with an example)

Most CPD records do not fall down on the learning. They fall down on the reflection. A course title and "very useful, learned a lot" does not show a reviewer what changed. A good reflection does, and it does not need to be long.

Why the reflection matters

Regulators want to see that your CPD made a difference.

• CORU checks for "evaluation and reflection of the learning achieved", alongside your learning activities and your plans for the next 12 months.
• HCPC asks registrants to show that CPD has contributed to the quality of their practice and benefits service users.

The reflection is where you show both.

A simple method: What? So what? Now what?

This three-question model comes from Rolfe, Freshwater and Jasper (2001). It is quick to learn and works for almost any activity.

1. What? Describe the activity and what you learned.

• What was it, when, and how long?
• What was new to you? Be specific: a technique, a guideline, a way of thinking.

2. So what? Explain why it matters for your practice.

• How does this change your understanding?
• What were you doing before, and what was missing?

3. Now what? Say what you will do differently.

• What will you change, start or stop?
• How will you know it has worked?
• Is there anything you still need to learn?

If you prefer more structure, Gibbs' reflective cycle (Gibbs, 1988) adds stages for your feelings and an evaluation of what went well and badly. Use whichever helps you think. Reviewers care about the content, not the model.

Example: the same workshop, written two ways

A 6-hour online workshop on sensory processing, attended by an occupational therapist.

Weak

Attended a sensory processing workshop. It was very informative and I learned a lot about sensory strategies. I will use this in my practice. 6 hours.

This gives the reviewer nothing to check. What was learned? What will change?

Stronger

What? On 12 September I completed a 6-hour online workshop on sensory processing in school-age children. About 4 hours were new to me: how to grade sensory input across the school day, and how to use a structured observation checklist rather than relying mainly on parent report.

So what? Until now my sensory recommendations for schools were fairly general, and teachers found them hard to fit into the day. The workshop showed me why short, scheduled movement breaks tied to the timetable are easier to keep up than open-ended advice.

Now what? I will use the observation checklist at my next three school visits and write recommendations as a timetable with named times. I will ask the class teachers at the six-week review whether the plan was workable. I also want to learn more about interoception, so I have added a reading goal to my plan for next year.

The stronger version names the learning, links it to real practice, and sets a change you could check later. It also claims only the hours that were genuinely new.

Quick checklist before you save

• Did you date the entry, and is it inside your audit period?
• Does the reflection say exactly what you learned?
• Did you explain how your practice changed, or will change?
• Does the length of the reflection match the credits you claim?
• Have you removed anything that could identify a service user or colleague?
• Is it in your own words?

Write it yourself

It is tempting to paste notes into an AI tool and let it write the reflection for you. Be careful. CORU's CPD Audit Policy asks registrants to avoid submitting AI-generated content, and warns that plagiarism or AI-generated content may be treated as professional misconduct. Reviewers also tend to recognise generic text that could have been written about any course.

What helps is capturing your thoughts quickly, while they are fresh, then writing the reflection yourself. Dictating a few sentences on your phone straight after a session is often enough to get started.

Sources

• Rolfe, G., Freshwater, D. and Jasper, M. (2001) Critical Reflection for Nursing and the Helping Professions: A User's Guide. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
• Gibbs, G. (1988) Learning by Doing: A Guide to Teaching and Learning Methods. Oxford: Further Education Unit, Oxford Polytechnic.
• CORU CPD Audit Policy, version 3 (November 2025)
• HCPC: Standards of continuing professional development
• IASLT: CORU CPD record do's and don'ts