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CPD for locums & portfolio careers: proving ‘whole scope’ without chaos

How UK IMGs working locum/portfolio can organise CPD and supporting information so appraisal remains simple and coherent.

Review date
Jan 2026
Reading time
12 min read
Author
Dr Kola Tytler MBBS CertHE MBA MSt MRCGP
On this page
IMG pathwayThis guide is updated for 2026 regulations (UK/US/Aus/Can). Always verify with official bodies.

Key points

  • Your appraisal must cover your whole practice — portfolio careers need explicit scope mapping.
  • Keep one master CPD log across all organisations, then summarise by theme.
  • Collect evidence little-and-often (emails, attendance, brief notes), not in a panic pre-appraisal.
  • Your designated body/connection must match reality to avoid revalidation delays.
Portfolio careers are normal in the UK—but they create friction if your evidence is scattered across Trust systems, agency portals, and random certificates. The win is to centralise the narrative while keeping the evidence light.

The portfolio CPD playbook

1

1) Write a ‘whole scope’ map

List roles + approximate sessions + key responsibilities. This becomes the spine of your appraisal submission and makes it obvious why each CPD item is relevant.
2

2) Use a single CPD log and tag each entry to a role

Role-tagging solves the “mismatch problem” (eg doing leadership CPD but not explaining your leadership scope).
3

3) Standardise your evidence capture

If you can’t reliably get certificates: capture a screenshot/email invite + a 3-line reflection + what changed. That is often more meaningful than a PDF certificate alone.
4

4) Don’t over-collect; curate

Pick the most impactful CPD items for appraisal. Many appraisers prefer quality over volume—impact beats quantity.
5

5) Keep your governance clean

Use the GMC tool to ensure your designated body/connection is correct, especially if you move Trusts or go heavily locum.
SourceiatroX Toolkit: Portfolio career basics (how to structure scope and evidence).
Open Link
SourceiatroX Toolkits directory: admin systems that reduce appraisal workload.
Open Link
SourceGMC: Find your connection for revalidation (My DB Tool).
Open Link
SourceGMC: CPD guidance (PDF) — CPD must consider your whole professional practice.
Open Link
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  • List roles + approximate sessions + key responsibilities. This becomes the spine of your appraisal submission and makes it obvious why each CPD item is relevant.

    Return to this section

  • Role-tagging solves the “mismatch problem” (eg doing leadership CPD but not explaining your leadership scope).

    Return to this section

  • If you can’t reliably get certificates: capture a screenshot/email invite + a 3-line reflection + what changed. That is often more meaningful than a PDF certificate alone.

    Return to this section

  • Pick the most impactful CPD items for appraisal. Many appraisers prefer quality over volume—impact beats quantity.

    Return to this section

  • Use the GMC tool to ensure your designated body/connection is correct, especially if you move Trusts or go heavily locum.

    Return to this section

United Kingdom · Jobs · Article 9 of 13