Giving your time and your architectural skills back to the community can be valid and rewarding CPD. This sort of activity might include doing pro bono work for Business in the Community; advising your place of worship; mentoring; working for CRASH; helping Architects for Aid; giving talks to schoolchildren; working in disaster relief and reconstruction; and any other activity like this that taps into your skills.
Obtaining your CPD in this way is not just a box ticking exercise. There is no question that you can benefit from voluntary work just as much as the recipient organisation will. You will exercise old skills, and pick up new ones, all of which can be used in your professional life. Most of the activities you engage in in this context will fit neatly into the
RIBA CPD Core Curriculum| topics.
Work that architects do in schools, working together with teachers and students, can be counted towards the total hours of yearly CPD that you are required to complete.
Architects in Residence provides a practitioner partnership plan designed to support architects and teachers intending to work together on a school-based project.
The plan provides a step-by-step guide to establishing a practitioner partnership and offers significant CPD opportunities for both architects and teachers. This is recognised not only by the RIBA but also by the Teaching Development Agency (TDA).
These pages will be expanded on from time to time, and other links will be added as they arise.