Continuing Professional Development (CPD) in Tier 4 of the Agricultural Reform Programme: A consultation

Introduction

The Scottish Government’s Vision for Agriculture was published in March 2022. It set out our long-term vision to transform how we support farming and food production in Scotland to become a global leader in sustainable and regenerative agriculture. The powers to achieve that vision were developed in legislation. The Agriculture and Rural Communities (Scotland) Act received Royal Assent in July 2024.

The Agricultural Reform Route Map sets out how we will move towards a new four-tiered framework of support. This includes support for skills, knowledge and training, including Continuing Professional Development (CPD).

Tier 4 support, in the form of skills, knowledge and training is currently provided through the Farm Advisory Service, Knowledge Transfer and Innovation Fund and the Practical Training Funds. This, together with other Tier 4 support, is expected to continue to evolve and improve as we move forward and deliver the incremental improvements identified in the Rural Support Plan and Code of Practice for Sustainable and Regenerative Farming. CPD is expected to form an integral part of our plans to assist improvement in sectoral activities.

Purpose of the consultation

This consultation is about Continuing Professional Development (CPD) in Tier 4 of the Agricultural Reform Programme. Tier 4 focuses on people and professional development. This includes skills, knowledge, training, CPD, advisory services, and business support.

It asks a series of questions about key aspects of a policy for a CPD system in Tier 4. These relate to aspects of the CPD system that users would need to engage with. The following are the main subjects and areas of questions:

• Section 1 - users of the CPD system
• Section 2 - the approach to CPD – voluntary, mandatory or a combination of approaches
• Section 3 - key elements of the CPD system, including activities that can count towards CPD
• Section 4 - the amount of CPD to be undertaken in a year
• Section 5 - exemption from undertaking CPD under certain circumstance for part or all of a year
• Section 6 - support to assist users of the CPD system
• Section 7 - encouraging the uptake of CPD
• Section 8 - a technical aspect of the CPD system
• Sections 9 to 12 - topics relating to good practices found elsewhere, impacts, monitoring and evaluation and looking ahead to the future.

This consultation does not cover technical matters relating to the development of a CPD recording system (for example, how the Scottish Government will procure the system and its technical specifications). Whilst this is a separate work strand, the Scottish Government recognises the importance of having a system that is not burdensome, is accessible and easy to use.

You can respond to this consultation on the Scottish Government’s CitizenSpace website.

Your views

We welcome your views on this consultation. They will help shape and develop the policy on the CPD system before Ministers take a decision on its introduction, its approach and policies. Your response will help to provide evidence to inform decisions that Ministers will make on the CPD system in due course.

We appreciate that there are a large number of questions in this consultation. Please feel free to answer the questions that are most relevant to you and that you have a particular view on. You do not need to answer all the questions if you do not want to.

The Scottish Government will use the responses to the consultation in a number of ways. We will publish them in accordance with the respondent information forms received. Responders who want to keep their response private will stay confidential and will not be published.

All respondents should be aware that the Scottish Government is subject to the provisions of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 and would therefore have to consider any request made to it under the Act for information relating to responses made to this consultation exercise. To find out how we handle your personal data, please see our privacy policy.

We will analyse responses and publish analyses which will set out the main themes and trends. All this work will help us to inform how we further shape the policy for the CPD system.

The policy background – the importance of skills and knowledge

Responses to previous Scottish Government consultations on agriculture have identified the need for the development of appropriate skills and knowledge and stressed their importance in helping to transform the sector. They have also asked for long term support for skills and knowledge, both for individuals and businesses.

We recognise the importance of skills and knowledge and specific mention of this has been included in the Vision of Agriculture and the Rural Support Plan. This states that “we will work alongside farmers, crofters and land managers to ensure that they have the right support to identify and develop the skills needed for regenerative and sustainable farming, changes of land use and adaptation to the changing climate”.

CPD sits in part of Tier 4 (“complementary support”) of the Agricultural Reform Programme. Whilst it is a standalone Tier, it also underpins and helps to support the other Tiers. As with the other support in Tier 4, it could help to contribute to the five strategic outcomes of the Agricultural Reform Programme. It could help to support a Just Transition in respect of skills, knowledge exchange, wellbeing and mental health and access to services. It could have downstream benefits for the four outcomes in the Programme:

• High Quality Food Production
• Thriving Agricultural Businesses
• Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation
• Nature Restoration.

It could also help meet short, medium and long-term outcomes of the Agricultural Reform Programme. The short-term outcomes could include the following:

• Knowledge and skills - farmers / crofters / land managers have improved knowledge of and skills in regenerative, sustainable and efficient practices
• Behaviour change – farmers / crofters / land managers have implemented regenerative and sustainable practices on farms / crofts / land
• Relationships – there could be improved connections / networks between farmers / crofters / land managers
• Workforce – women could have improved opportunities in the sector; there will be improved work readiness and employability of young farmers / new entrants.

Support for a Just Transition Development of CPD policy – how did we get here?

The Scottish Government has undertaken extensive work to develop its Agriculture Reform Programme. This has included significant consultation with stakeholders. Its approach continues to be one of co-development.

Recent examples include the proposals for the Agriculture and Rural Affairs (Scotland) Act 2024 (then Bill). This was followed by the Scottish Parliament’s consultation on the draft Bill. The Parliamentary scrutiny included extensive discussion on CPD. This included:

• who it should apply to
• accessibility, including costs; and
• monitoring and evaluation.

During the passage of the Agriculture and Rural Affairs (Scotland) Bill, we undertook an informal consultation on the Agriculture Knowledge and Support System (AKIS). This included aspects of the AKIS and CPD in Tier 4, including the amount of CPD that should be undertaken in a year. Respondents noted the importance of skills, knowledge and expertise. They also noted the need to provide additional and co-ordinated support for them.

Discussions were also held with a range of stakeholder organisations in the agriculture and crofting sectors to hear their views from their perspective on key points on the proposed CPD system. We also wanted them to think about what initiatives they currently provided that could help contribute towards CPD and to understand the potential impacts of the key points on them and the wider agricultural sector.

At the heart of the development of the CPD is collaboration with stakeholders. This enables us to understand their needs so that we can develop a CPD system that meets their needs. As we develop and introduce the CPD system, we will continue to work in collaboration with the sector.

Continuing Professional Development (CPD) – what is it?

Continuing Professional Development (CPD) is a concept that has been around for a number of decades. It is well-known in some sectors, though less so in others as a commitment to ongoing lifelong learning. It helps people to update and maintain their skills, knowledge, and expertise during their careers. It is also helps them to meet specific learning outcomes. These can relate to programmes, such as the Agricultural Reform Programme. It can help people contribute to and meet the objectives and outcomes of this programme.

CPD is about identifying learning and development needs and undertaking activities to meet them. It also includes reflecting on what has been learned, how it can be put in practice and the next steps forward for learning.

CPD is structured around a CPD system. This typically includes a framework which sets out:

• the activities that can be undertaken to contribute towards CPD (CPD activities),
• the amount of CPD that is to be undertaken in a 12-month period (a CPD year), and;
• whether the CPD is voluntary, mandatory or a mixture of both.

It also includes guidance on how to use the system, understand its requirements and for users to get the best out of their CPD.

As well as the framework, there is a CPD recording system. Individual users each have a CPD log to record the CPD activities that they undertake during a CPD year.

A CPD system also includes activities that can help contribute towards CPD requirements. These provide pointers to some of the activities that can be undertaken. They may include ones that are mandatory.

The Scottish Government would provide a CPD system, including a CPD framework, guidance, CPD recording log and signposting to some key or central activities that could help contribute towards agricultural CPD in Scotland.

Options available to develop a CPD system

The Scottish Government has different options available to it for developing a CPD system. It has powers to set up a system under regulations of the Agriculture and Rural Communities (Scotland) Act 2024. This includes powers to require groups such as farmers, crofters or land managers to undertake CPD. This could be either directly or indirectly connected with farming or the wider rural economy. In short, these powers would most likely be used to set up a mandatory system, or one with mandatory elements.

We could also look to the introduction of a voluntary CPD system. This would not necessarily need regulations to be made under the 2024 Act. However, these might be required if there was to be an element of compulsion. For example, if we created a requirement for the development of knowledge on a specific topic, we may need to create regulations. The Scottish Government could consider whether this is best achieved as CPD, or including it as a separate specific support scheme requirement under the other 3 tiers.

A decision has still to be undertaken on whether the CPD system should be voluntary, mandatory or a mix of the two. You will be able to provide your views on these options during the consultation.

Our approach to CPD

We know that farmers, crofters, and land managers are already undertaking CPD. Some are engaged in schemes that include CPD or an element of it. Others may be involved in a formal CPD programme as part of membership of a professional organisation. They may be undertaking it to ensure that they record their learning activities. There are others that are undertaking CPD but do not recognise that they are. They may be learning on the job without thinking about it or recognising that they are doing CPD. They may be reflecting on their learning and how they can use it but are not recording it.

They may already be participating in a workshop on sheep nutrition, or attending a webinar on enhancing biodiversity. They may be attending their local discussion group to listen to a visiting speaker on a new technological development. Or they could be going on a farm walk with their neighbour to discuss new approaches to agroecology. They may have researched a topic from the Farm Advisory Service (FAS) website that will let them improve their herd wellbeing. These examples all highlight that they will be learning something new that they didn’t know before and putting it into practice.

Whatever agriculture sector workers have done to date, we want to encourage them to think about their learning activities and record them. This will help them to develop personally and professionally. It is this reflection on what has been learned and how it is put into practice that is the real value of CPD.

We want farmers, crofters and land managers to recognise that CPD is beneficial to them. It delivers benefits for them, their businesses, and the wider agriculture sector in Scotland. It shouldn’t be a burdensome activity that has to be undertaken. Benefits can include increased confidence, development in technical ability, and/or increased knowledge and understanding of developments in the sector.

We know that we need to consider many factors when we develop the CPD system. No two farms are alike. Farmers, crofters and land managers and others each have their own development needs. We know that farmers and crofters and others in the agriculture sector need a wide range of skills and knowledge so that they can operate.

There is already a range of knowledge and skills requirements for agricultural businesses to operate. There are also farm assurance schemes that include CPD activities. Membership in chartered institutions often does too. The age-profile of the sector means that some individuals may not be comfortable with IT, and they have their own preferred ways of learning. We know that not every business or person has a laptop or a tablet computer and that the CPD system needs to be accessible on a number of different types of electronic devices.

There are higher levels of dyslexia in the sector. This shapes learning needs and preferences. A range of factors mean that it is not always possible to leave a farm to go on a training course. Considerations include geographical location of a farm or croft and family commitments such as child-care.

A CPD system would need to be customer focused. It would need to relevant to the needs of individuals and their personal and professional development and those of the wider sector. It would need to be accessible and cost-effective. Activities must be available in a range of formats to suit different learning needs and preferences.

We know that people will have a range of attitudes towards CPD, as indeed differing views on the use of the term CPD. Regardless of these, we know that we would need to present CPD and all aspects of the CPD system, including our CPD policies in a way that is understood and is accessible and practical to undertake.