🌐 Web Resources

A hand-picked mix of official guidance and real-world GP training resources.

🎯 Why the PDP Actually Matters

It's not just admin. Here's why it genuinely counts.

Many trainees treat the PDP as an afterthought — something to fill in quickly before the ESR so it doesn't look empty. That's understandable. It's also a mistake.

📖 What Is a PDP?

And — equally important — what it is NOT.

The PDP (Personal Development Plan) is an educational tool within your ePortfolio that helps you document your bigger, chunkier learning needs — the ones that require planning, time, and multiple steps to address.

Where do PDP entries come from?

• Learning logs that identify recurring gaps — use the "Send to PDP" button on FourteenFish
• Patient encounters that exposed a knowledge or skills deficit
• PUNs (Patient Unmet Needs) and DENs (Doctor's Educational Needs)
• Feedback from CBD/COT/Mini-CEX assessments and MSF
• RCGP GP SelfTest — curriculum-wide learning needs assessment
• Placement planning meeting — self-assessment against specialty handbook tool
• ESR capability ratings — "Needs Further Development" must generate a PDP entry

How many PDPs do I need?

How PDPs work on FourteenFish — the sequential order trap

The three stages must be completed in order. Skipping Stage 1 means your previous entries disappear from Stage 2, and entries not agreed at Stage 3 won't appear at the next ESR:

1. Review progress against previously agreed PDP goals

   At ESR preparation — carry forward or close existing entries before moving on.

2. Suggest new PDP entries

   In the ESR preparation area — propose new goals for the next review period.

3. Agree the PDP with your Educational Supervisor

   At the ESR — co-construct the agreed goals for the coming review period.

🧠 What Type of Learning Is It?

All learning fits into one of three categories. Know which one you're targeting.

Every PDP entry addresses a learning need that falls into at least one of three categories: Knowledge, Skills, or Attitudes (KSA). Being explicit about which category your PDP targets helps you write sharper goals.

✨ The SMARTIES Framework

Your blueprint for writing PDP entries that pass muster.

Every PDP entry should pass each of these eight checks. If your goal fails any of them, it needs rewriting before your supervisor or ARCP panel sees it.

🧩 SMAARTER+ — The Extended Framework

SMAARTER+ adds Evaluated, Reviewed, and + Impact documented — the three elements ARCP panels most often find missing.

🛠️ Quick PDP Builder — Five Steps From Gap to Goal

1. Identify the gap

   What specifically do you not know, cannot do well, or find yourself avoiding? One gap per PDP entry.

2. Link it to a case or log entry

   Which patient encounter, feedback, or assessment triggered this? Reference it explicitly.

3. Add the guideline or framework

   For knowledge gaps: name the specific NICE CKS topic or BNF section. For skills: name the model (e.g. Calgary-Cambridge, SPIKES).

4. Define the specific action and deadline

   What exactly will you do, and by when? Name the course, the clinic, the colleague. Date it specifically.

5. Define the outcome and evidence

   What will you produce as evidence? What will have changed in your practice?

✅ Good vs Bad PDP Examples

The difference between a PDP that impresses and one that quietly underwhelms.

📋 General PDP Goals — Weak vs Strong

🧠 SMART Goals — Applied to GP Training

🎯 SCA Consultation Skills — Weak vs Strong

✍️ How to Write a PDP Entry

A practical, step-by-step walkthrough.

1. Identify the need from a real experience

   Start with what triggered the learning need — a patient encounter, a learning log, feedback, an ESR capability rating, or your RCGP GP SelfTest results. Reference it explicitly. The PDP should feel like it grew out of real practice, not thin air.

2. Define what you want to learn (Knowledge, Skills, or Attitudes)

   State explicitly which of KSA this addresses. Be specific — not "learn about diabetes" but "improve my knowledge of insulin initiation in type 2 diabetes in primary care, and when to refer."

3. Plan the specific actions you'll take

   Name the steps: a course, supervised practice, reading specific guidelines, sitting in with a colleague, completing a targeted CBD. Concrete actions are far more convincing than vague plans.

4. Set a deadline for each action

   Give each action a specific date. "By September 2026" is a deadline. "Soon" is not. Better still — book things in now and note the confirmed date.

5. State what evidence you'll provide

   Plan upfront: certificate, learning log reflections, CBD, COT, Mini-CEX. Make it easy for your supervisor to see that you've done what you planned.

6. State how you'll know you've achieved it — and write a follow-up CCR

   Keep it simple: "I will be able to manage this independently." Then write a follow-up clinical case review showing you applied the learning. This closes the loop — the step that most distinguishes high-quality portfolios.

7. Update it during the post

   Set two diary reminders per review period — at 6 weeks and 10 weeks. Update as you complete activities. A dynamic PDP impresses far more than a static one.

📂 PDP Ideas Database

Grouped by RCGP capability area and by rotation — to help you get started.

Use these examples as starting points, not templates to copy verbatim. Remember: most trainees cluster PDPs around Capability Area B (clinical knowledge) — actively choose from Areas A, D, and E to demonstrate breadth.

By RCGP Capability Area

By Hospital Rotation — GP-Framed PDP Ideas (Alphabetical)

During hospital rotations, always reframe the learning need in GP terms: not "what will I learn in this specialty?" but "how will this help me as a GP?"

📋 PDP Requirements & Curriculum Framework

What the RCGP requires, how to align your PDPs to capabilities, and staying current with the 2025 curriculum update.

📋 PDP Mandatory Minimums

✍️ Writing Up PDP Items Related to AKT

When AKT practice questions or clinical gaps reveal a knowledge deficit, convert it into a specific, evidenced PDP entry. The examples below show the difference between a vague reaction to a knowledge gap and a well-constructed PDP goal.

🎯 Gold Standard PDP Goals — Examples

🗂️ Linking PDPs to the 13 Core Capabilities

PDPs should map across all five RCGP capability areas. A common ARCP pitfall is that all entries cluster around Area B — aim for breadth across the training year.

🧪 Learning Needs Identification Tools

📅 RCGP Curriculum Update — August 2025

🎯 SCA High-Yield Tips — PDP Edition

What examiners actually look for — and how a well-written PDP predicts SCA success.

There is a stronger link between the PDP and SCA performance than most trainees realise. Examiners assess whether you are the kind of doctor who identifies their own weaknesses, reflects on them, and changes their behaviour as a result. That is precisely what a good PDP demonstrates.

⚠️ Common SCA Failures Linked to Poor PDP Thinking

🧠 The Three SCA Domains — PDP Goals for Each

🌍 IMG-Specific SCA Notes — Linked to PDP Priority Areas

🩺 Case Scenario — From SCA Failure to Strong PDP

🎭 SCA-Linked Worked Case Examples

These cases show exactly what separates a weak SCA candidate from a high-scoring one — and how clinical knowledge translates into consultation performance.

🔁 GP Practical Framework

How to embed the PDP into your real working day — not just your ESR preparation.

The most effective PDP entries begin in clinic — with a moment where something did not go quite right. The skill is learning to catch those moments and convert them into structured learning goals before they fade.

1. Identify your learning need — from multiple sources

   Complete RCGP GP SelfTest or specialty self-assessment tool before each placement planning meeting. Review feedback from COTs, CbDs, MSF. Check your last ESR: which capabilities are rated "needs further development"? Those must feature in subsequent PDPs.

2. Write the PDP entry — SMART from the start

   Name the specific learning need (not a broad domain). Write an action plan with named activities — which specific NICE CKS section, which clinic to attend, which module to complete. Set a realistic target date and state exactly how you will know the goal is achieved.

3. Take action and document it

   Attend the clinic, complete the module, attend the course. Write a CCR at the time. Upload any certificate to FourteenFish as a CPD entry. Link the CCR to the PDP entry via "Send to PDP". Do this at the time — not weeks later.

4. Apply the learning in practice

   See a patient where the newly acquired knowledge is relevant. Write a follow-up CCR explicitly linking to the previous learning: "Following my learning about COPD management last month, today I managed a patient with an exacerbation in the following way…" This closes the learning loop.

5. Review and reflect on the PDP entry

   In the review field on FourteenFish, complete the reflection: "Did I achieve this goal? What challenges did I face? Has this generated a new learning need?" Mark the entry as completed, carried forward, or modified with a reason.

6. Present at your ESR

   Review all current PDPs — flag which have been achieved, which to carry forward, and propose new entries. Ensure at least two PDP entries are active per training year with progress demonstrated in at least one. Arrive with draft goals and use the ESR to refine them with your supervisor.

7. Safety-net your own learning

   If a rotation ends before you complete a PDP, carry it forward explicitly — unexplained incomplete PDPs are flagged. Use study leave proactively to address persistent gaps; study leave must be congruent with GP curriculum learning outcomes. If a more important need emerges mid-post, update the plan and document why.

🏆 The Gold Standard PDP Loop

📋 Worked Example — Complete PDP Entry (Loop Closed)

⚠️ Common PDP Pitfalls

The mistakes trainees make most often — and how to avoid them.

• Writing it the night before the ESR. The PDP is supposed to be a living document. Creating all your PDPs in the week before your ESR signals that the process is not integrated into real learning.
• Setting goals that are too broad. "Improve my clinical knowledge" is not a PDP entry — it is a life plan. Narrow it down to one specific area with specific actions.
• "Pass AKT" or "Write more log entries" as PDP goals. The RCGP explicitly cites both as unacceptable. They are national requirements for all trainees, not personal learning needs.
• All PDPs in the same capability area. Trainees frequently write multiple PDPs around clinical knowledge (Area B) but neglect communication, ethics, leadership, and community orientation (Areas A, D, E). Aim for at least one entry outside Area B per review period.
• No evidence planned upfront. Always state what evidence you will provide — a certificate, a CBD, a COT. Entries where certificates are uploaded but no subsequent CCR demonstrates application of the learning are explicitly flagged.
• Failing to close the learning loop. If you complete an e-learning module but never write a follow-up CCR showing how that changed your practice, the loop is open. Open loops are noted by supervisors and ARCP panels.
• Leaving the "How will I know when it's achieved?" field empty. Keep it simple: "I will be able to manage this independently, evidenced via CBD."
• Not updating the PDP during the post. PDPs not updated since the last ESR suggest passive engagement and are flagged at ARCP. Update it as you go — even briefly.
• Using the PDP to tick boxes, not to direct learning. Trainees who write PDPs reactively — after identifying what has already been done — miss the true value: prospective planning that shapes clinic attendances, courses, and supervisory sessions.
• Hospital-rotation PDPs that are not GP-relevant. Always ask: "How does this help me as a future GP?" Learning LSCS technique is not GP-relevant. Counselling patients about elective LSCS, risks, and recovery is.
• Copy-pasting PDP entries between review periods. Identical or near-identical entries suggest the PDP is not being treated as a living document. Supervisors and ARCP panels notice this consistently.
• Writing PDP goals that describe feelings, not actions. "I want to feel more confident with dermatology" is a wish. "I will complete the Primary Care Dermatology Society online module and review 10 lesions with the practice's skin lead by October 2026" is a goal.
• Ignoring it post-CCT. The training PDP transitions directly into the appraisal PDP. Appraisal is mandatory for revalidation. A poor training PDP is a poor start to your professional career.

🛠️ Practical Shortcuts That Actually Work

🧠 PDP Cheat Sheet

The one-page summary you'll want before every ESR.

💎 Insider Pearls

Real-world wisdom from GP trainees and trainers — the things nobody tells you at the start.

💡 What I Wish I Knew

🧑‍🏫 For Trainers: Teaching the PDP

Common trainee blind spots, tutorial ideas, and discussion prompts.

Common trainee blind spots on PDPs

• Confusing the PDP with the learning log. Many trainees write PDP entries that are more like log reflections — describing what happened rather than planning what they'll do next. Redirect: "What is your plan to address this need?"
• Choosing comfortable goals. Trainees often gravitate towards areas they already find interesting. Gently challenge them to identify a genuinely difficult area — one that makes them slightly uncomfortable. That's where growth happens.
• Passive goals. "Read about X" or "attend tutorials" without specifics. Encourage concrete plans: which course, which guidelines, which supervisor to sit in with, by what date.
• No evidence mapped out. Introduce the habit early: "What will you show me to prove you've done this?"
• All PDPs in the same capability area. Ask trainees to audit their PDP entries across the five areas A–E. If everything is in Area B, redirect towards Areas A, D, or E for the next entry.
• Treating the PDP as a confidential document. Create a psychologically safe space where identifying gaps is celebrated, not penalised.

Tutorial Ideas and Discussion Prompts

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

The questions trainees ask most — answered directly.