CPDAS - The CPD Register Review

Commercial Identification and Contactability

CPDAS operates at cpdas.co.uk and is the trading website of CPDAS LTD (Company No. 12837288), incorporated on 25 August 2020. The registered office address is The Coach House, 51 Sackville Street, Barnsley, England, S70 2BZ, which corresponds to the address published on the Contact page of the website.

However, the website does not disclose the legal entity name (CPDAS LTD) or the Companies House registration number anywhere on the site. The Companies Act 2006 (sections 1200–1206) requires UK companies operating under a trading name to disclose the registered company name and number on their website and in commercial correspondence. This requirement is not met.

A contact email address and a physical address are published on the Contact page. No telephone number is published anywhere on the website.

The sole current director is Donald Andrew McCarron (appointed 20 January 2021; identity verified at Companies House). Diane Green, who was an original director and PSC from incorporation, resigned as director on 13 January 2026 and ceased as PSC on 22 January 2021. Donald Andrew McCarron holds 75% or more of shares and voting rights and has the right to appoint or remove directors.

The website does not name any individual as responsible for accreditation decisions.

Sources: cpdas.co.uk/contact/ (accessed 20 May 2026); find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/12837288 (accessed 20 May 2026); find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/12837288/officers (accessed 20 May 2026).

Transparency of Assessment Framework

No assessment framework or accreditation criteria are published on the cpdas.co.uk website. The About page states that CPDAS accredits learning activities that meet "predetermined standards" in quality of presentation, technique and clarity in delivery, and learning value, but no further detail is provided. No criteria document, scoring framework, or assessment rubric is accessible anywhere on the site, with or without login.

The website states that CPDAS assesses learning activities and "where needed, offer[s] guidance to the provider in satisfying the desired criteria." This implies criteria exist but they are not made available to prospective applicants or consumers.

Members are directed to a "step-by-step Submission Guide" referenced on The Process page, but this guide is not publicly accessible — it is stated to be provided only after membership is taken out. Prospective training providers are therefore unable to assess whether their courses are likely to meet the accreditation standard before committing to a subscription.

Sources: cpdas.co.uk (accessed 20 May 2026); cpdas.co.uk/about/ (accessed 20 May 2026); cpdas.co.uk/the-process/ (accessed 20 May 2026).

Pricing Transparency

Pricing is published on The Process page (cpdas.co.uk/the-process/). Three membership tiers are offered:

Basic Plan — £59 per month (1–5 learning activities)
Standard Plan — £79 per month (6–10 learning activities)
Plus Plan — £99 per month (11–15 learning activities)

The pricing structure is subscription-based. The minimum term is stated as six months. It is not made clear whether the monthly fee covers the assessment of individual activities within the tier limit, whether there are additional per-activity assessment charges, or whether any other fees apply (for example, for guidance, certificates, or use of the CPDAS logo).

Sources: https://cpdas.co.uk/pricing/ (accessed 20 May 2026).

Terms and Conditions

No terms and conditions are published on cpdas.co.uk. No link to terms of service, accreditation terms, membership terms, or any equivalent document was found anywhere on the website, including on the Become a Member page or The Process page.

Training providers signing up for a CPDAS membership subscription — a commercial agreement with a minimum six-month term — have no access to the terms that will govern that relationship before committing. This includes no published information on: the duration and renewal of accreditation; conditions under which accreditation may be withdrawn; intellectual property provisions for course materials submitted; refund and cancellation rights; or complaints and dispute resolution procedures.

The absence of published terms is a significant commercial transparency failure. The Consumer Rights Act 2015 and the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013 impose pre-contractual information obligations on businesses contracting with consumers. The absence of accessible terms may also be relevant where training providers are small businesses or sole traders.

Sources: cpdas.co.uk/the-process/ (accessed 20 May 2026)

Individual Course Assessment

The Process page at cpdas.co.uk/the-process/ describes a two-step process: (1) becoming a CPDAS member, and (2) submitting individual learning activities for accreditation. The page states: "Before it may be offered bearing the CPDAS symbol of accreditation a learning activity must first be assessed and certified."

This indicates that individual activities are assessed separately rather than blanket accreditation being granted at provider level. Members are directed to a submission guide and a submission portal ("Submit a learning activity for accreditation").

No publicly accessible register of CPDAS-accredited activities is published on the website, meaning consumers cannot independently verify whether a specific course is CPDAS-accredited.

Sources: cpdas.co.uk/the-process/ (accessed 20 May 2026).

Review and Renewal

The Process page states: "The learning activity remains certified while ever the provider is a member of CPDAS and unless the provider cancels certification."

This indicates that accreditation is tied entirely to the continuation of membership subscription. No independent review cycle is described — accreditation does not expire and is not subject to periodic re-assessment unless the provider cancels. There is no stated process for CPDAS proactively reviewing accredited content to ensure it continues to meet the stated standards over time.

This model means that a course accredited at the point of initial submission retains accreditation indefinitely as long as the subscription is maintained, regardless of whether the course content changes or professional standards in the relevant field evolve. This is particularly relevant given CPDAS's stated specialism in the medical aesthetics sector, where regulatory guidance and clinical standards are subject to ongoing development.

Sources: cpdas.co.uk/the-process/ (accessed 20 May 2026).

Sale of Training Courses or Materials

No evidence was found on cpdas.co.uk that CPDAS itself sells training courses or training materials directly through its website.

However, the sole director and 75%+ shareholder of CPDAS LTD, Donald Andrew McCarron, is simultaneously a director of Roberts McCarron Ltd (Company No. 11041694, active), which is registered with SIC codes including 85590 (Other education not elsewhere classified), 86220 (Specialists medical practice activities), and 96020 (Hairdressing and other beauty treatment). These activities are consistent with operating within the medical aesthetics sector — the same sector in which CPDAS states it specialises. Mr McCarron is also a director of The Aesthetics Guild Ltd (Company No. 12832797, active), incorporated on 24 August 2020 — one day before CPDAS LTD — and registered with the same SIC codes as CPDAS (82990 and 85590).

Whether either entity sells or delivers training in the medical aesthetics sector that CPDAS accredits has not been confirmed from publicly available website content at the time of this review, but the structural relationship is material and is assessed further under Section 9.

Sources: find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/officers/zZOhnbCXe-liCEc7SRt12rSJShk/appointments (accessed 20 May 2026); find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/11041694 (accessed 20 May 2026); find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/12832797 (accessed 20 May 2026).

Financial Relationships with Third-Party Service Providers

No disclosure of financial relationships with third-party service providers was found on the cpdas.co.uk website. No affiliate arrangements, referral fees, or commercial partnerships are mentioned. Given the absence of a published terms and conditions document, it is not possible to confirm whether any such arrangements exist or are disclosed contractually.

Sources: cpdas.co.uk (accessed 20 May 2026).

Ownership or Control Relationships with Aligned Commercial Interests

A significant undisclosed conflict of interest has been identified. Donald Andrew McCarron — the sole director and sole person with significant control of CPDAS LTD (holding 75% or more of shares and the right to appoint or remove directors) — simultaneously holds active directorships in two other companies operating, or apparently operating, in the same medical aesthetics sector that CPDAS specifically accredits:

1. Roberts McCarron Ltd (Company No. 11041694)
Active company incorporated on 1 November 2017. SIC codes: 46460 (Wholesale of pharmaceutical goods), 85590 (Other education not elsewhere classified), 86220 (Specialists medical practice activities), 96020 (Hairdressing and other beauty treatment). These SIC codes are consistent with operating a medical aesthetics clinic and/or delivering training in the medical aesthetics sector. The company shares the same registered address as Mr McCarron's personal correspondence address (78 Bence Lane, Darton, Barnsley, S75 5PE).

2. The Aesthetics Guild Ltd (Company No. 12832797)
Active company incorporated on 24 August 2020 — one day before CPDAS LTD (incorporated 25 August 2020). SIC codes: 82990 (Other business support service activities not elsewhere classified) and 85590 (Other education not elsewhere classified) — identical to those filed for CPDAS LTD. The company is registered at the same address as Mr McCarron's personal correspondence address. The name and SIC codes indicate this entity is likely to operate in the education or training space within the aesthetics sector.

3. Roberts McCarron Clinics Ltd (Company No. 11379881)
Now dissolved. Incorporated 24 May 2018. This entity appears to have operated as a medical aesthetics clinic.

The conflict of interest:
CPDAS's stated primary specialism is the accreditation of training activities within the medical aesthetics sector. The sole decision-maker at CPDAS simultaneously directs companies that appear to operate in that same sector — one as an active education entity (The Aesthetics Guild Ltd), one as an active business with medical practice and beauty treatment activities (Roberts McCarron Ltd). Where a training provider in the medical aesthetics sector submits courses to CPDAS for accreditation, the sole assessor and controller of CPDAS is also a director of entities that may be competitors of that provider.

This conflict of interest is not disclosed anywhere on the cpdas.co.uk website. No independence policy, conflicts of interest register, or separation-of-functions statement is published.

Sources: find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/officers/zZOhnbCXe-liCEc7SRt12rSJShk/appointments (accessed 20 May 2026); find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/12832797 (accessed 20 May 2026); find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/11041694 (accessed 20 May 2026).

Consistency of Filings with Advertised Activity

CPDAS LTD is registered at Companies House.

The company files micro-entity accounts (most recently for the year ended 31 August 2025, filed 20 October 2025). Micro-entity accounts contain minimal financial disclosure and do not include turnover or detailed profit and loss information. This is lawful for companies meeting the micro-entity threshold but means the financial scale of the accreditation operation cannot be assessed from public filings.

Confirmation statements have been filed consistently and on time. All filings are current.

Sources: find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/12837288/filing-history (accessed 20 May 2026).

Companies House Status

CPDAS LTD (Company No. 12837288) is registered at Companies House with a status of Active. The company was incorporated on 25 August 2020. The registered office is The Coach House, 51 Sackville Street, Barnsley, England, S70 2BZ.

The confirmation statement was last made on 22 January 2026 (filed 24 January 2026). Accounts were last made up to 31 August 2025. All filings are up to date. There are no overdue filings or dissolution proceedings on record.

Sources: find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/12837288 (accessed 20 May 2026).

Website Status

The cpdas.co.uk website is live and operational.

The absence of a working privacy policy page is particularly notable given that the website collects personal data through its Become a Member and Contact forms. The absence of working terms and conditions and pricing pages is also assessed under the relevant criteria above.

No ICO registration was identified for CPDAS LTD at either of the addresses associated with the company (S70 2BZ — registered office; S75 5PE — director's correspondence address).

Sources: cpdas.co.uk (accessed 20 May 2026); ico.org.uk/ESDWebPages/Search (accessed 20 May 2026).

Regulatory Rulings and Public Enforcement Records

A search of the ASA published rulings database returned no rulings against CPDAS or CPDAS LTD at the time of this review. No other regulatory enforcement records were identified from publicly available sources in relation to this organisation.

Sources: asa.org.uk/codes-and-rulings/rulings.html (searched 20 May 2026).

Distinguishing CPD from Regulated Qualifications

The cpdas.co.uk website does not use language that conflates CPD accreditation with regulated qualifications. The site does not use "Level" descriptors (e.g., Level 3, Level 4), does not claim Ofqual recognition or equivalency, and does not describe accredited activities as leading to formal qualifications. The distinction between CPD accreditation and regulated qualifications is not explicitly drawn out for consumers, but no misleading equivalency claims were identified.

The website does describe CPD certification as providing "an assurance that the training has reached or exceeded exacting standards" in the context of professional indemnity insurance for the medical aesthetics sector. This is contextually appropriate and does not imply regulatory recognition.

Sources: cpdas.co.uk (accessed 20 May 2026); cpdas.co.uk/medical-aesthetics/ (accessed 20 May 2026).

Unsubstantiated Claims

The following claims published on cpdas.co.uk were not substantiated by publicly available evidence at the time of this review:

1. "Combining many years of experience in mentorship, training and the production of training programmes" (About page, cpdas.co.uk/about/)
No basis is provided for this claim. The company was incorporated on 25 August 2020. No director profiles, biographies, or supporting evidence for the claimed experience are published on the website.

2. "Our panel of assessors has a combination of many years of experience in the Medical Aesthetics field and training in particular" (Medical Aesthetics page, cpdas.co.uk/medical-aesthetics/)
The website does not identify any assessors by name, qualification, or background. The existence and composition of the "panel of assessors" is asserted but unverifiable from any publicly available information.

3. "The CPDAS symbol of certification is proof that all aspects of a learning activity have been deemed to have met our exacting standards" (About page, cpdas.co.uk/about/)
The phrase "exacting standards" is used without any published criteria, framework, or benchmarks against which these standards can be assessed. As no assessment framework is publicly available (see Section 2), the claim that any particular standard has been met is unverifiable.

These claims are assessed against the CAP Code (UK Code of Non-broadcast Advertising and Direct & Promotional Marketing), which requires that marketing communications be substantiated. Training providers and consumers relying on these claims in selecting an accreditation body should be aware that supporting evidence is not publicly available.

Sources: cpdas.co.uk/about/ (accessed 20 May 2026); cpdas.co.uk/medical-aesthetics/ (accessed 20 May 2026).

Further Information about this organisation

Website

https://cpdas.co.uk

Companies House Number

12837288

Companies House Incorporation Date

25th August 2020

ICO Number

Not Available

ICO Registration Date

Not Available

Physical Office Published

Yes

Telephone

Yes

Live Chat

Pricing Published

Yes

Accreditation Criteria Published

Activities Individually Accredited

Stated

Review Frequency

Unknown

Last Updated

20th May 2026

Disclaimer

We do our best to ensure that all information is accurate and up to date. If you are part of the above-mentioned organisation and some of the information, we have found is inaccurate please contact us at [email protected] so we can rectify this for you.

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