NEW April 2008 Download a poster to promote the APPLE scheme (123KB 
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APPLE Certificates
If you have requested a hard copy of your APPLE certificate in the last month but have not yet received it, please email Clair Parkin.
About the Accreditation of Practice Placement Educators' Scheme (APPLE)
The APPLE scheme is intended to be for all professional practice placement educators (PPEs) of occupational therapy students that have normally been practising a year or more. It offers PPEs a choice of two routes by which to apply for accreditation:
- Experiential route (guided application form)
- Programme route (taught course that has been endorsed by COT. Interprofessional taught courses that have been endorsed by the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy for the ACE scheme receive automatic endorsement by the APPLE scheme, as the two schemes are assessed on the same learning outcomes, and are therefore included in the list below)
Accreditation is valid for a five-year period after which it will be up to the accredited educator to seek re-accreditation (see step 7).
The Accreditation of Practice Placement Educators (APPLE) scheme has been developed primarily in order to:
- Give professional recognition to the role of the Practice Placement Educator (PPE)
- Establish a nationally recognised scheme for the accreditation of practice placement educators that is transferable across regions
- Support requirements for CPD activity through evidence of learning and application in the workplace
Seven easy steps to becoming accredited through the APPLE scheme
Step 1 - Read through the APPLE Framework and Guidance and decide which route to accreditation you are going to apply for accreditation through.
- APPLE framework (55KB *)
- APPLE Guidance (210KB *)
Step 2 - Contact the relevant HEI to ensure that they are still running the route listed here. Some HEIs run supporting workshops for the experiential route, so you should check to see if this is the case for the HEI you would like to get accredited through. Some HEIs running courses for PPEs have designed these courses so that they meet the learning outcomes of the APPLE scheme. For the programme route, you should contact the relevant HEI for further information and dates of forthcoming courses.
Step 3 - The experiential application form can be downloaded from this website and should be completed and submitted with the supporting evidence as described in the framework and guidance, and addressed to the Practice Placement Tutor at the relevant HEI. If you are applying for accreditation through the programme route, you should attend the taught course and submit the cover sheet with any work submitted for assessment.
- Experiential Route (124KB
) - Cover sheet - Programme Route (67KB )
Step 4 - The HEI will assess your application for the experiential route, or the assessment from the taught course and will provide you with feedback and the outcome of accreditation.
Step 5 - Once you have met the learning outcomes of the APPLE scheme, the HEI will enter your details onto the APPLE database, which will confirm your accredited status. You will be automatically notified of your login details to the database, which is accessible at www.inpractice.org/cot/apple
Step 6 - You should login to the APPLE database and check that your details are correct. It is your responsibility to ensure that your personal and employment details are kept up to date. We will use these details to contact you towards the end of the 5 year accreditation period to remind you to apply for re-accreditation. Through the APPLE database, you can print off a copy of your APPLE certificate, or request one on certificate paper from the College by clicking on the relevant link.
Step 7 - Accreditation is valid for a five year period. Towards the end of your period of accreditation you will receive an automatic notification from the College reminding you that you are required to apply for re-accreditation. Details regarding the re-accreditation process will be available shortly from this web page.
For any APPLE queries, please email Clair Parkin
Information for Practice Placement Tutors at HEIs
If you are a practice placement tutor at an HEI and you have not already submitted your taught course for endorsement by the College and you would like to do so, you will need to complete a proforma for COT endorsement of your programme. If you have had your programme route endorsed through the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP) Accreditation of Clinical Educators scheme (ACE) you do not need to have it endorsed by COT, as both schemes meet the same learning outcomes. You should, however, notify COT in writing that your programme route has been endorsed by CSP.
- HEI Proforma (79KB )
An assessment sheet for HEIs marking applications for the experiential route is also available to download:
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