Empowering new consultants
The RCP's six-step programme is tailored for new consultants, focusing on leadership training, preparation for the consultant role, and clinical leadership skills. This comprehensive CPD approved new-consultant development programme focuses on self-development, managing others, job planning, improvement and efficiency. Join us to enhance your leadership skills and connect with fellow new consultants.
Apply nowI started the course as a registrar and finished as a consultant with my dream job plan! This course was instrumental in helping me achieve this goal. Each teaching day had a theme with experts in the field as speakers - Weijia Zhang, Consultant Neurologist, 2023-24 graduate
Why choose our programme?
Our development programme for new consultants focuses on enhancing your capabilities and career growth. With expert-led sessions and a supportive community, you'll acquire the skills needed to succeed. There is the opportunity to further enhance your CV with the RCP’s new consultant leadership accreditation.
This is an established programme, with over 100 new consultants having engaged with the programme. Their feedback has helped to evolve the programme to ensure we continually support new consultants in their role.
Data from previous post CCT surveys, showed that new consultants were lacking development and job planning support. We developed this programme in consultation with the RCP’s new consultants committee to provide this development and support.
Programme overview
This programme has been designed by a team including members of the RCP new consultants committee and experienced senior healthcare leaders and includes patient representation. Teaching days will be interactive allowing learners to work together and explore specific areas important to the role. Supportive resources and reading lists will be supplied by the RCP library team throughout the programme. Guest speakers will feature on teaching days to share their knowledge and experience with learners:
- Day 1: Developing yourself and your role – ‘Things you need to know when you first start’
- Day 2: Managing others and culture – ‘Leadership, culture and teamwork’
- Day 3: Working within the legal structures of your role – ‘Conquering complaints’
- Day 4: The NHS, improvement and efficiency – ‘Mastering management’
- Day 5: Developing team culture – ‘Equality, inclusivity and understanding difference’
- Day 6: Onward into the future – ‘Onward journey’
Programme dates
You can select to attend this programme in RCP Liverpool or RCP London. Two dates will be delivered online, allowing Liverpool and London cohorts to meet and network together.
London cohort
- Developing yourself and your role – 6 November 2025 (face-to-face)
- Managing others and culture – 14 January 2026 (online, joint cohorts)
- Working within the legal structures of your role – 5 March 2026 (face-to-face)
- The NHS, improvement and efficiency – 14 May 2026 (online, joint cohorts)
- Developing team culture – 7 July 2026 (face-to-face)
- Onward Journey – 15 September 2026 (face-to-face)
Liverpool cohort
- Developing yourself and your role – 13 November 2025 (face-to-face)
- Managing others and culture – 14 January 2026 (online, joint cohorts)
- Working within the legal structures of your role – 16 March 2026 (face-to-face)
- The NHS, improvement and efficiency – 14 May 2026 (online, joint cohorts)
- Recognising team culture – 15 July 2026 (face-to-face)
- Onward Journey – 22 September 2026 (face-to-face)
Programme highlights
- Networking for new consultants: Connect with peers at a similar career stage, across different specialities and trusts. Develop peer support and build valuable professional relationships to develop skills and confidence.
- Advanced leadership skills: Engage in a curriculum tailored to your career growth and the complex leadership challenges you might face when transitioning into your new consultant role.
- Gain valuable insights: Learn from experienced senior leaders in healthcare about key topics such as ‘serious incidents’ and ‘handling complaints.’
- Achieve New Consultant Leadership Accreditation: Recognition of the leadership development you have committed to in the year-long programme. This option to gain accreditation will support future career progression and appraisals as evidence of you putting these skills into action.
- Put leadership theory into practice: Enjoy inspiring taught content, delivered by expert facilitators, covering medical leadership theory. Delivered in practical ways to enable you to implement in the workplace and put theory into practice straightaway and tailored to your career growth and leadership development.
- CPD approved: Each workshop day is approved for 5 external CPD credits, a total of 30 CPD credits.
- Experienced Faculty: The programme is delivered by experienced academic and clinical faculty who bring a wealth of knowledge and first-hand experience of leadership roles within the NHS.
Accreditation
Learners who attend all six teaching days will be eligible to complete the accreditation associated with this programme. The accreditation will link skills from one of the programme areas, to a trust project you are currently involved in. Time will be given in the programme to look at trust-based projects and how they can be supported with the tools you are learning.
Networking opportunities for new consultants
The six-step new consultant programme provides networking opportunities for professional growth and collaboration. Learners engage in interactive sessions, group discussions, and workshops that are facilitated by experienced clinical faculty.
Networking is integral to the programme, providing a platform for sharing experiences, exchanging ideas, and building lasting professional relationships.
How to apply
The programme is aimed at those who have recently transitioned into a new consultant role, or who will be stepping into that role during the duration of the programme (e.g. within the next 12 months) including post-CESR SAS doctors.
Programme fee
The cost for the year-long programme is £2,000 (£1,800 with our 10% member discount). This can be split over two financial years and we encourage the use of study budgets and trust top-ups to fund the programme.
Self-funded and employer-funded applications
Applications for self-funded or employer-funded places are reviewed on a rolling basis, applications may close early if all places are offered.
If you are an employer wishing to secure a place on the programme but have not identified your applicant, please contact the team via email: education.courses@rcp.ac.uk. The team will be able to reserve a place for your learner. If you are wishing to book multiple places on the programme, please contact education.courses@rcp.ac.uk, we will be able to offer a multi-seat discount. Applications for self-funded or employer-funded places will close on 21 July.
Funded places
There are a very limited number of funded places on this programme. If you wish to be considered for a funded place, as part of your application you will need to provide a short statement outlining any previous formal leadership training you have undertaken, and any personal financial circumstance we should take into account when allocating the funding.
This statement should include your reason for requiring funding support, which may include, as examples, less than full-time working, caring responsibilities, experience of challenge or discrimination in the workplace, or other personal circumstances you wish us to consider. All information will be kept in confidence and deleted after allocation of funding.
Applications for funded places close on 1 July allowing those who are not successful for a funded place to consider applying for a self-funded place.
Apply nowInformation for trusts funding places on the programme
We can work with Trusts to develop long-term partnerships for staff development, reserving places on programmes, offering discounts for multiple bookings, and working with you and the learners to develop impactful workplace-based development projects.