First5 induction hub

Grow your network

The support networks you enjoyed as a trainee can seem to disappear once qualified, but this needn't be the case. Actively take steps to find support, both clinical and non-clinical, ideally beyond your own practice team. Having a supportive practice is a great place to start, however there are also First5 peer support groups in some areas, or you can start your own. Social media groups, attending local events, special interest groups or the RCGP Annual Conference are all great ways to meet like-minded peers.

Choosing your job

You really are spoilt for choice when it comes to choosing the career for you. However, it is important to remember that you are not tied into one way of working throughout your career. Remember the choice you make should be one that works both for you and your family.

Planning ahead

There are lots of things about working as a GP that can have an impact on your life or your plans. Applying for that first mortgage, parenthood or going off sick are all life events we may have to deal with at some point in our careers. Plan, plan, plan! Planning ahead wherever possible will usually prepare you for the nuances and unpredictability that these events can bring.

Sorting your finances

Pensions, self-assessments, PAYE, indemnity and membership fees are just some of the things you need to be thinking about when you begin your work as a GP.

Keep up-to-date

Investing in your continuing professional development (CPD) will ensure that you keep learning and contributing towards your appraisal. Make the most of opportunities available and really embrace the idea of lifelong learning. Try to keep on top of CPD as you go along. It may seem daunting but devoting regular small amounts of time to this will save you all that cramming later along the line.

Preparing for appraisals

Your appraisal is a chance to reflect on what you've done, what you've learnt, and to focus on the future and what you'd like to achieve. They should be a positive experience where you can chat freely and openly with your appraiser. Make contact early with your appraiser to become familiar and find out if they have any particular requests from you such as when to release your portfolio, timing/location of appraisal meeting.

Get help if things are tough

Being a GP offers a fantastic career; however it can sometimes be stressful and overwhelming when you are not feeling your best. We're here to help and support you.

Life outside your job

Remember all those things you used to enjoy before life got taken over with exams and studying? Now's the time to rediscover them. It's vital to have ways to relax and let off steam. If you don't have a hobby, consider finding one.

Explore your clinical interests at work

There's plenty to help you get your teeth into your clinical interests and take opportunities to develop them. Your interests keep GPs moving forward in knowledge and expertise so it's well worth pursuing them.

Don't stand still

If you enjoy your job then that's great, but if you don't, you can change it. That's the beauty of being a GP. You have the chance to decide how you work, what you specialise in and who you help.

GMC Registration

Ensure you have full registration with a license to practice. You can do this by visiting the GMC website Performers List – You must be on the NHS England Medical Performers List to work as an independent GP. Apply to your local primary medical performers' list (different across the UK):

• England: NHS England Performers List
• Northern Ireland: Northern Ireland Primary Medical Performers List
• Scotland: Health Board Performers List
• Wales: All Wales Medical Performers List
• If you have moved to a different region, it is likely your designated body will have changed, and it is a good idea to check it has been updated on GMC online.

Your RCGP membership

If you are a GP registrar and complete the CCT programme, your membership with the college will be upgraded to Member and you will automatically receive an A4 membership certificate.

Top tip

You will benefit from reduced membership fees during your first two years post-qualification.

New Members ceremony

As a newly qualified member, we invite you to join us in celebrating this momentous achievement with your loved ones and fellow peers, at one of our member ceremonies. These are held from September through to May, are hosted by the President of the RCGP, and are held in locations across the UK. For more information, you can visit our member ceremonies page.

Work-life balance is about managing the demands of your work and your personal life in a way that helps prevents burnout. A good work-life balance means you can be productive at work and have time for yourself and your family. It's really important to focus on your own wellbeing – if your health and happiness is suffering, then you won't get the best out of yourself and neither will your patients.

Stay active

What do you get up to in your spare time? It might be you get your kicks from your weekly running group, or perhaps you're more into attending your local book club. Whatever it is, make sure you make time for it. So often these activities are the ones we drop when facing increased workloads, without realising just how important they are to our wellbeing. Make a note of which activities and hobbies are important to you and protect that time in your weekly or monthly organiser.

Give

As GPs, we’d be lying if we said it's unusual to feel so exhausted that you feel as if you have nothing left to give... it's not. But keeping some of 'you' aside to give to your family and friends is important and making small gestures to the people we love and care for makes us feel good. Spending quality time with your favourite people is the best medicine for recharging your batteries.

Keep learning

You've already read a lot about CPD and its importance to you, but investing in your own personal growth and development has immense value for your own wellbeing too. Not just related to work, but learning more about yourself, and what helps you is just as important to help sustain you in your role.

When it comes to shaping your career, the possibilities are endless — and that can feel both exciting and overwhelming. The most important thing is to choose a path that feels true to you and supports the life you want to build. Trust your instincts, lean on the wisdom of those who know you best, and don’t be afraid to explore new directions. Whether it’s deciding what to do or where to live, give yourself the space to dream, discover, and design a future that inspires you.

There are different ways to work as a GP:

• Salaried GP: Regular income, fixed hours, employee benefits.
• GP Partner: Business owner, more control, higher income but more responsibility.
• Locum GP: Flexible working, varied experience, but requires self-employment management.
• Portfolio GP:Combines clinical work with teaching, research, or specialist interests.
• Teaching: GP training, medical students, mentorship.
• Specialist Roles: GP with extended roles (GPwER), Musculoskeletal (MSK) GP, women’s health, minor surgery, palliative care.
• Leadership: Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCG roles, Primary Care Network leads, medical education.

Top tip

To discover a world of opportunities listen to GP+ careers podcast.

As you consider your next steps, it's important to understand the financial responsibilities that come with your chosen path. Whether you're entering a partnership, working as a locum, or taking on a salaried GP role, here are some key financial insights every new GP should be aware of.

• Tax & National Insurance – Locum and partner GPs must handle their own taxes. Consider an accountant.
• Pension – Important to familiarise yourself with the NHS Pension, as how it is administered, will differ depending on your type of GP role. For more info visit the Wesleyan website.
• Indemnity Insurance
  NHS bodies and organisations are financially responsible for the clinical negligence of their employees. All NHS Trusts/ Health Boards in England, Scotland and Wales are members of the state-backed NHS medical schemes.
• In England, indemnity is provided through the Clinical Negligence Scheme for Trusts (CNST), which is administered by the NHS Resolution.
• In Wales, indemnity is provided through the Clinical Negligence Scheme for Trusts and Health Board by Welsh Risk Pool Services.
• In Scotland, indemnity is provided by the Clinical Negligence and Other Risks Indemnity Scheme (CNORIS). NHS National Services Scotland is the Scheme Manager, with the Central Legal Office providing legal advice and guidance to Health Boards.
• In Northern Ireland, each health and social care trust provides its own indemnity, funded by the Department of Health, Social Security and Public Safety.

The schemes do not cover non-NHS work, such as private practice and chargeable services such as medicals, reports and statements will not be covered by the scheme. GMC hearings and criminal cases will not be covered by the scheme. You will need to remain a member of a medical defence organisation for these areas.

You'll already have been told by now that being a doctor means that you and lifelong learning go hand in hand – Continuing Professional Development (CPD) is your way of showing your commitment to this. As you've gone through your GP training, you'll already be used to the idea of continuous learning – you'll have, and be working on, your Personal Development Plan (PDP) which will mean you're constantly reflecting on your learning and growing your skill set.

The GMC requires you to do enough CPD to keep up-to date across your whole scope of work. Your supporting information must cover your whole scope of practice and be of sufficient quality to support your learning and development and helps you to identify areas for improvement in your practice. The GMC does not set a minimum quantity of supporting information, hours or credits you must collect. The GMC advises against collecting multiple examples that demonstrate reflection and learning of the same skills. We recommend in preparing for your appraisal you reflect on three examples of learning over the year that have led you to make a change in your own practice and reflect on changes you have made as a result of reflecting on patient feedback/complaints and learning events.

What counts as CPD?

Examples include, but are not limited to:

• Evening meetings run by your local health board/trust or RCGP faculty.
• Day long courses.
• eLearning modules from a variety of sources – RCGP have a huge portfolio accessible, free to members, including all of our One Day Essential Conferences.
• Webinars.
• If you spend time looking up something you weren't sure about, during morning surgery for example, reflect on it and record it.
• Listening to podcasts.
• Keep up to date with current affairs and reflecting on how these may affect your clinical practice.
• Mandatory CPD like BLS, fire safety, infection control, manual handling etc. It can vary locally so it’s worth checking with your appraiser or workplace.

Top tip

All of our One Day Essentials conferences are free for RCGP members. This gives members access to a minimum of 126 hours of CPD annually, either by attending live sessions or catching up later through recordings and presentation slides — available for up to nine months after each event.

Don't panic – appraisal and revalidation should be straightforward, provided you stay on top of things and integrate continuous learning into your practise.

• Appraisals – Your appraisal is a chance to reflect on what you're doing to keep up to date and fit to practice, across your whole scope of practice. It should be a positive experience where you can speak freely and openly with your appraiser, who will be on hand to help with your personal and professional development planning.

Top tip

Fourteen fish - FREE use of our Appraisal Toolkit for First5 GPs
The RCGP will fully fund the FourteenFish Appraisal Toolkit for 5 years for any GP who gained their CCT from 2021 onwards.

Visit the revalidation webpage for guidance on how to navigate appraisals.

• Your appraisals are facilitated by an appraiser, who'll normally be provided based on your GMC connection to a designated body. It is your responsibility to ensure that the details held by them about your work are accurate so that your connection can be correctly worked out – so make sure your status and location are kept up-to-date with the GMC and your designated body.
• Revalidation - Is the renewal of your UK license to practice by the GMC, usually once every five years, providing you have demonstrated your continued competence in the work you do. It is based on the appraisal process, and the recommendation of your responsible officer. If you're engaging in the appraisal process, there is no extra work required for your revalidation.

Mentoring

RCGP Mentoring is a platform where members can connect to help each other grow and thrive in their career growth and development. RCGP Mentoring helps you navigate the mentoring process, supporting you in your role as a mentee or mentor and ensuring that your mentoring relationships are enjoyable and productive.

Networking and support

When you qualify, it can feel like you lose your support network - your trainer, GP training group, support in your practice. That’s why the First5 Community group was created; to provide a voice to newly qualified GPs both locally within your faculty and nationally through a voting seat on Council. The community group is made up of First5 Leads for each faculty so if you’d like to contribute locally or nationally, we’d be really pleased to hear from you.

RCGP supports and encourages its First5 members to shape their membership experience through various avenues, including:

• RCGP Faculty group
• First5 community group

Your first day is just that — the beginning. Stay grounded, stay curious, and remember you're not alone. The RCGP, your colleagues, and your patients are all part of your journey. Give yourself time to settle in. Even experienced GPs need a few months to feel fully comfortable in a new setting. Be kind to yourself.

Top 10 tips for day one success:

1. Breathe: You belong here. Trust your training and instincts.
2. Arrive early: Come 20–30 mins early to get settled and check systems.
3. Know key contacts: Identify your practice manager, supervisor, and reception team.
4. Start small: Request fewer or longer appointments, plus a midday admin slot.
5. Learn systems: Understand referrals, formularies, and use induction materials.
6. Document well: Keep notes clear, structured, and defensible. Use templates.
7. Safety net: Explain red flags, plan follow-ups, and note uncertainties.
8. Connect with staff: Be friendly and respectful to all team members.
9. Debrief and reflect: Discuss tough cases and reflect daily to grow.
10. Be kind to yourself: It's okay to feel unsure—you're learning every day.