Promoting Excellence for General Practice
The RCGP and COGPED have jointly produced guidance on GP Specialty Training, to expand upon the GMC’s “Promoting excellence: standards for medical education and training” requirements, and to clarify what this means in a General Practice Setting.
“Promoting Excellence in General Practice” focuses on areas where there are significance differences between GP specialty training and training in other specialties, as well as on areas of risk in delivering high-quality GP specialty training. It also covers all years of the GP training programme and all the environments in which GP specialty training takes place, NHS and non-NHS, including OOH providers, in all parts of the UK.
- Promoting Excellence for General Practice: Application of GMC Standards to GP Specialty Training (PDF file, 224 KB)
The document is updated regularly, and Version 4 (published October 2026) features the following updates:
- The definition of "Assessments" was amended to include the SCA
- References to "HEE" were revised to "NHS England"
- Several references to "competence" were amended to "capability".
- The terms "trainee" and "GP Specialty Trainee" have been amended to "GP Registrar/Postgraduate Doctor in Training".
- A link to "Tomorrow's Doctors" was updated to "Outcomes for Graduates"
- R1.5 was amended to include the phrase "such as in an annual GP educator appraisal".
- R1.7 has been amended to include to make it clear that the supervisor should be a GP.
- R1.9 has made it clear that the other "appropriately qualified individual" should be a GP.
- R1.15 has been amended to include "and encouraged to"
- R.16 has been amended to make it clear that this is subject to the relevant contractual obligations across the four nations, and added "up to" three education sessions.
- R1.21 has been amended to add a reference to "4.19"
- R2.11 - a box has been added to make it clear that "Training must take place in a safe environment and culture, free from discrimination and undermining."
- R4.6 the "four specific roles" have been defined
GMC requirements for assessors
The following table sets out how Local Education Providers (LEPs) can meet the requirements set out in the GMC’s “Excellence by Design”.
| GMC Requirement | Details of requirement | Details of how the requirement can be met |
|---|---|---|
| CR 4.9 | As part of the programme of assessment, guidance must be provided about the nature, role and responsibilities of assessors and examiners. | LEPs must provide training in conducting workplace-based assessment and the roles and responsibilities of assessors. Extensive resources are available to support the delivery of such training on the RCGP website, in the WPBA section. |
| CR 4.10 | Organisations must set out appropriate requirements and guidance to enable assessors and examiners to make professional judgements about learners’ performance and behaviour to an agreed standard. | Candidate assessors must be trained in how to use the WPBA tools and be familiar with the GP curriculum. The WPBA section of the RCGP website contains all information required to support this training. Candidate assessors should demonstrate familiarity with the capability descriptors and should also have opportunities to undertake calibration exercises with other candidates. |
| CR 4.12 | Organisations must make sure assessors and examiners are able to distinguish consistently between different levels of performance and behaviour. | Participation in benchmarking and calibration sessions at educational events should enable candidate assessors to demonstrate consistency in their assessments of capability across the breadth of workplace-based assessments. The LEP should highlight the capability descriptors included in the RCGP workplace-based assessments. This should be part of the initial and ongoing training. |
| CR 4.13 | Organisations must indicate where professional development is required including on the equality and diversity issues that are relevant to their role as assessors and fair decision-making. | When applying to become a registered GP trainer and Educational Supervisor. All GP Educational Supervisors must demonstrate that they have completed training in equality, diversity, and inclusion. While serving as a GP trainer, regular updates should be made, typically with support from LEP-delivered educational activities. |
Differential attainment seminar
- Differential attainment seminar: Summary (PDF file, 287 KB)
- Download differential attainment seminar report (PDF file, 753 KB)
Trainee portfolio resources
FishBase guidance
FishBase is the candidate and deanery management portal for the Trainee Portfolio.
Video guidance
Programme directors and ARCP members and chairs
The recorded webinars for these groups of users are available in FishBase. To access the videos, simply log in to FishBase and click one of the links on the home page (under "FishBase videos and guides").
Educational supervisors
The Clinical Supervisors Report: Guidance for Supervisors
Webinars for GP trainers
Every six months, as part of our commitment to developing your professional confidence and supporting you in your role as a trainer, we provide a live refresher on the Simulated Consultation Assessment (SCA) to help you prepare, guide and support your candidates for exam success. The webinars are delivered in two parts, covering what trainers need to know about the exam and consultation techniques, and case examples and exam preparation.
Useful links for supervisors
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