ICAEW has a long-standing series of in-person training and virtual courses to support finance practitioners in every aspect of their career. Alongside these ICAEW has greatly expanded its e-learning offering in recent years to enable you to complete more professional development online, including a range of free and low-cost training options.

Whether you’re looking to complete your ethics continuing professional development (CPD) requirement, boost your Excel skills, stay up-to-day with the latest corporate reporting developments, expand your use of AI or prepare for taking on a leadership role, ICAEW has a learning option for you.

ICAEW has a long-standing series of in-person training and virtual courses to support finance practitioners in every aspect of their career. Alongside these ICAEW has greatly expanded its e-learning offering in recent years to enable you to complete more professional development online, including a range of free and low-cost training options.

Whether you’re looking to complete your ethics continuing professional development (CPD) requirement, boost your Excel skills, stay up-to-day with the latest corporate reporting developments, expand your use of AI or prepare for taking on a leadership role, ICAEW has a learning option for you.

Technical training and updates

As part of its e-learning offering ICAEW has created a suite of short courses offering technical training. The courses provide between one and four hours of learning with costs starting from £25 – ICAEW members simply need to log in to claim a 30% discount.

There are courses focused on tax, financial management and project management, as well as on accounting standards, audit planning, assessing internal controls and financial instruments.

Alongside e-learning, ICAEW’s Essentials CPD programme returns in 2026 offering virtual classroom sessions. This year there will be 60 live webinars covering core technical areas, as well as updates focused on industry sectors and practice areas.

For those wanting more comprehensive online training on accountancy related standards, ICAEW offers certificate programmes on International standards on auditing (20% discount available for members) and International financial reporting standards (30% discount available for members).

Both programmes offer 12-month access to a suite of detailed elearning modules covering all aspects of current standards and their application. 

Hot topics: AI and sustainability

Two key factors shaping the future of the accounting profession are artificial intelligence and sustainability. To help provide members with the understanding and skills to thrive in an AI-enabled and sustainability focused world, ICAEW has created two comprehensive e-learning programmes.

Launched in the summer, ICAEW’s GenAI Accelerator offers eight courses with bite-sized modules, each focusing on a critical aspect of GenAI in finance. The courses feature step-by-step prompting, use cases and demonstrations. 

The programme aims to help members in understanding how to use tools to enhance their work, make better decisions, and unlock new opportunities. The programme is building over time, and members can currently access the first three courses:

• Fundamentals of GenAI
• GenAI in financial operations and decision making
• GenAI in corporate reporting and tax compliance 

ICAEW members have free access to the first course and can benefit from discounts on the remaining courses.

At the start of the year, ICAEW launched its Sustainability Accelerator Programme. Incorporating ICAEW's popular Sustainability Certificate, this flexible series of elearning resources offers up to 50 hours of professional development and is freely available to ICAEW members. 

The programme has been designed to equip finance professionals with the strategic insight and technical expertise required to lead sustainability and ESG initiatives. Courses include building the business case, reporting and decision making, and strategy and risk management.

Data and Excel

Alongside offering key technical updates and vital skills for the future, ICAEW also provides training on the tools members use every day. Live and virtual courses on making the most of Excel have long been popular and so ICAEW created six e-learning modules on the software mapped to ICAEW’s spreadsheet competency framework.

The Excel Series builds on users' familiarity with the software, starting at Module 1 with simple ways to speed up when using Excel. The modules then cover how to create good formulas and adding graphics, before moving on to more sophisticated uses. Each module includes a 30-minute video and an Excel workbook with examples, exercises, tips and shortcuts. Modules can be purchased individually (£30) or the whole series (£150) and ICAEW members get a 30% discount. 

Ethics and governance

With ethics at the heart of CPD, ICAEW offers a comprehensive online Ethics CPD Course which is updated each year to cover changes to regulation or emerging challenges. In 2025, the course expanded to include new modules on AI and developing ethical cultures.

The e-learning resource is free for ICAEW members and offers guidance and support on applying the Code of Ethics to everyday working life in industry and practice. Split into four modules, the course covers the fundamental principles that underpin the code before delving into ethical decision-making and the support you need to help you make good decisions.

Going hand in hand with the ethics course is another e-learning programme, aimed at auditors: Applying Professional Judgment in Audit. This four-hour practical programme focuses specifically on supporting those in audit in exercising good professional judgement.

Created with world-renowned expert Professor Sir Andrew Likierman, the e-learning programme examines what is needed to make good judgements and how the process of making a judgement should be approached. 

While the course has a £260 price tag for non-members, for ICAEW members the course is free. Log into the e-learning platform using your standard log-in details and a full discount will be applied at the checkout.

ICAEW also provides free e-learning tailored for those acting, or wanting to act, as charity trustees. Our Trustee Training Modules provide an overview of the legal and financial responsibilities of trustees, as well as offering support on the broader skill set needed to succeed as a trustee.

Leadership skills

For those members looking to take the next step in their career, ICAEW offers a series of leadership development programmes. These four-to-six-month courses offer practical workshops, personal one-to-one guidance from a professional coach or mentor, and support through peer learning groups.