The role of subject-specific continuing professional development for vocational teachers in further education: an artist-teacher in adult community learning perspective

In further education (FE), teachers and trainers are not legally required to undertake continuing professional development (CPD), with this mandate removed in 2013. Nevertheless, the Education and Training Foundation has emphasised the importance of maintaining and updating professional knowledge. Literature highlights CPD's contentious role among vocational FE teachers and trainers, with historical Department for Education research finding that over 60% of surveyed FE teachers spent no time on CPD in 2015-2016, despite the expectation to stay current in their fields. This paper utilises online surveys and interviews to examine the role of subject-specific CPD for artist-teachers, professionals in both art and teaching, in adult community learning (ACL) in the UK. Data from online surveys and interviews were collected in 2022 and analysed in 2024 and reveal that while artist-teachers in ACL are active in their art practices, they felt subject-specific CPD was not readily offered or provided by their workplaces.