Freely accessible to members, ICAEW’s Ethics CPD Course offers practitioners support in understanding and applying the Code of Ethics in their day-to-day work. The e-learning course was launched with four modules setting out the fundamental principles of the Code and offers guidance on ethical decision-making, case studies and ethical challenges in specific situations.

The course has now been expanded to include a fifth module covering the latest developments in ethics which will be updated annually.

The 2025 update covers:

• the upcoming revisions to the ICAEW Code of Ethics;
• the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023;
• ICAEW’s disciplinary process; and
• recognising threats to compliance.

“Our aim is to provide members with the support they need to maintain compliance with the Code and the confidence to tackle the increasingly diverse range of ethical challenges they may face,” says David Gomez, Senior Adviser, Ethics at ICAEW. “The new module is a great overview of the forthcoming changes to the ICAEW Code of Ethics, I’d urge all members to take a look before 1 July.”

Code of Ethics and economic crime

The new module outlines what has been changed in the updated ICAEW Code of Ethics, specifically addressing changes around the role and mindset of accountants and revisions that have been made relating to the use and impact of technology. 

Changes relating to role and mindset include explicit reference to the need for accountants to behave in a way that reflects the profession’s responsibility to act in the public interest, and to be aware of conscious and unconscious bias. Technology-related amendments include clear reference to confidentiality of data and the risk of relying upon technology to impairing objectivity.

The new module then goes on to focus on the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023, looking specifically at the creation of the new criminal offence of ‘failure to prevent fraud’.

Alongside outlining the offence and looking at where the legislation aligns and overlaps with other regulation (Bribery Act 2010, UK Corporate Governance Code) the course outlines six principles for putting in place a fraud prevention framework.

Members completing the new module will receive a certificate of completion, providing the evidence needed to meet their annual CPD requirement of an hour of verifiable ethics CPD.

The introduction of Module 5 comes after new additions were made to Module 3 at the start of the year, covering how to create an ethical culture and the ethics of artificial intelligence.