CLD Standards Council Scotland

What CLD Standards Council Scotland does

CLD Standards Council Scotland is the designated professional body for Community Learning and Development (CLD) practitioners across Scotland. Founded in 2008 and headquartered in Glasgow, the organisation sets and maintains professional standards for the sector, including the Code of Ethics, the Competent Practitioner Framework, and Standards and Benchmarks. It serves individual practitioners (paid and volunteer) and the employers who rely on its public register to verify practitioner status, with its sectoral remit shaped by a policy lineage spanning the 1975 Alexander Report through to the 2024 Still Report.

The organisation's core technology platform is i-develop: Learning for CLD, an online system that centralises member registration data, processes applications, manages the public register, and tracks professional development activity. It supports four integrated service lines: Professional Learning/CPD (including the Professional Induction Programme and a Learning and Development Review Process); the Registration System (initial registration, renewal, and public verification); Training Programme Approvals (including the Standards Mark for approved providers); and Resources and Publications covering values, ethics, frameworks, policy, and standards documentation.

As a professional body rather than a commercially-owned entity, the Council does not operate conventional sales channels. Service delivery occurs through direct engagement with practitioners, employers, and training providers via the i-develop platform, in-person events such as SCVO's The Gathering, and content marketing through its website and email communications. The organisation is governed by a council with committee membership and is currently transitioning leadership following the announced departure of Chair Alan Sherry OBE in early 2026.

Name

CLD Standards Council Scotland

Legal name

CLD Standards Council Scotland

Website

https://cldstandardscouncil.org.uk

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

CLD Standards Council Scotland is the professional body for Community Learning and Development practitioners across Scotland. It sets sector standards, maintains a public register of members, approves training programmes, and delivers continuing professional development via the i-develop online platform.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Standards and Regulation Services

NAICS

Regulation, Licensing, and Inspection of Miscellaneous Commercial Sectors (92615)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Teacher Standards, Ethics & Professional Conduct Boards (EDADAJAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Education Professionals (Teacher/Administrator CE, CPD) (EDAAALAE), Continuing Education (CE/CPD) & Provider Accreditation Bodies (EDADACAF)

Keywords

• Professional standards setting
• Community learning development
• Professional registration services
• Training programme approval
• Continuing professional development

Headquarters

HQ city

Glasgow

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

CLD Standards Council Scotland operates as the statutory professional body for Community Learning and Development practitioners in Scotland, setting and enforcing professional standards, maintaining a public register of registered practitioners, approving training programmes through its Standards Mark, and delivering continuing professional development (CPD) opportunities via the proprietary i-develop platform. Its offerings are unified across four service lines: registration, training approval, professional learning/CPD, and resources/publications.

Product overview

CLD Standards Council Scotland operates as a professional body offering a unified suite of services for Community Learning and Development practitioners in Scotland. The portfolio consists of four interconnected core service areas: (1) Professional Learning/CPD delivering training programmes, induction courses, and development reviews through the i-develop online platform; (2) Registration System managing professional membership, renewal, and public verification; (3) Training Programme Approvals providing standards, benchmarks, and the Standards Mark for CLD training providers; and (4) Resources and Publications including ethical frameworks, policy documents, and historical reports. The i-develop platform serves as the central data repository connecting registration and professional development activities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Professional Registration System Professional registration service for CLD practitioners in Scotland, providing initial registration, renewal processes and a publicly accessible register of members for verification of practitioner status (Registered Associate Membership, Registered Membership, Suspended without prejudice, Not registered, or Pending registration).
• Professional Learning / CPD Continuing professional development offering including the Professional Induction Programme, Growing the Learning Culture in CLD programme, and Professional Learning and Development Review Process for CLD practitioners.
• Training Programme Approvals Approval system for CLD training programmes including Approved Training Programmes, Professional Approval, Professional Practice Placement Standards, Developmental Approval Process, and the Standards Mark accreditation for the CLD training sector.
• i-develop: Learning for CLD Online learning platform and database for CLD practitioners housing registration application details, professional development records, and serving as the primary system for managing member data, training records and CPD learning delivery.

Quantifiable outcome

• Public register enables employers and public to verify practitioner registration status
• +1 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and moderate.

• Rocket SciencecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 January 2026Commissioned to design and conduct the National CLD Workforce Survey 2026. Rocket Science Research Consultant Jamal Hassan serves as the primary contact for survey-related inquiries. The survey aims to capture workforce data building on the previous 2018 survey, covering staff and volunteer numbers, CLD activities focus, qualifications, career plans, and challenges.
• SCVO (Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations)moderateStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 January 2026CLD Standards Council participates in SCVO's flagship event The Gathering at Edinburgh International Conference Centre in February 2026. Partnership enables outreach to the voluntary sector, membership promotion, and professional learning opportunities sharing.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• Children in Scotland: Umbrella membership body for individuals and organisations working with children and young people in Scotland. Comparable in role and scale as a Scottish non-profit that convenes a workforce, sets standards and runs CPD-style learning programmes for a defined professional community.
• Scotland's Colleges: Representative body for the college sector in Scotland, engaging in workforce development, sector standards and government liaison. Comparable in scale and remit as a sectoral standards/intermediary organisation, though not a regulator.

Regional players

• Education Workforce Council (Wales): Statutory regulator of the education workforce in Wales, maintaining a register of teachers, school learning support workers and further-education lecturers. Comparable regulatory model in a neighbouring UK jurisdiction, so useful as a structural cross-border benchmark.
• General Teaching Council for Northern Ireland (GTCNI): Statutory body that registers teachers and promotes professional standards in Northern Ireland. Operates the same register-plus-CPD model as GTCS and CLD Standards Council, but serves a different UK jurisdiction and a different workforce.

Broad incumbents

• Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA): Scotland's national awarding body for qualifications, accredited by Ofqual-equivalent bodies. Comparable in its role accrediting training programmes and qualifications — directly relevant to CLD Standards Council's Recognised Qualifications and Training Programme Approvals.
• Education Scotland: Scottish Government agency providing curriculum, professional learning and improvement support across all education sectors in Scotland. Overlaps with the Council's CPD and standards-setting remit but covers schools and broader education rather than the CLD niche.

Direct peers

• General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS): Statutory professional body for teachers in Scotland, operating the equivalent register, code of conduct, CPD requirements and approval of ITE programmes. CLD Standards Council is structurally modelled on GTCS but for the Community Learning and Development workforce.
• Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC): Statutory body responsible for registering and regulating the social services workforce in Scotland, with a public register, registration fees, CPD requirements and approved-qualification frameworks. Closest functional analogue to CLD Standards Council's register-and-approve model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cld-standards-council-scotland

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about CLD Standards Council Scotland