ESPC has relaunched its SPC Property Practice certification for solicitor estate agents north of the border.

The Scottish property portal has announced the return of its unique accreditation course for solicitor estate agents, following on from a successful first year in 2023.

Created and run in conjunction with The Law Society of Scotland and Edinburgh Conveyancers Forum, the SPC Property Practice certification is a unique qualification offered to solicitor estate agency firms signed up to ESPC’s Charter, and is the first of its kind in the UK.

Following on from the first year of the course, 40 new delegates have already signed up for this year’s intake, which will begin on 24 April 2024, with graduation in December 2024.

The qualification provides ESPC’s Chartered member firms with the opportunity to get ahead of potential UK-wide estate agency regulation due to come into force this year. ESPC spoke with the relevant Westminster parties in the early stages of designing the syllabus, to ensure it could provide maximum value alongside enabling qualified solicitor estate agents to attain the highest levels of knowledge, service and client care, going above and beyond the levels offered by traditional estate agents.

The syllabus was created by ESPC in collaboration with The Law Society of Scotland and the Edinburgh Conveyancers Forum, and will be delivered by six trainers including chartered surveyors, lawyers, solicitors and marketing experts. The subjects covered include Estate Agency; Marketing and Branding; Building Construction; Conveyancing for Non-Conveyancers; Legal; and a new addition to this year’s course, Ethics, delivered by The Law Society of Scotland’s Property Law Committee, to drive home the solicitor estate agency proposition and its importance within the Scottish property industry.

The SPC Property Practice qualification ties into the ESPC Charter, launched in November 2022, which offered ESPC’s member firms the opportunity to sign up to Chartered status and ensure that they offer their customers the very highest standards of care and expertise. The SPC Property Practice qualification further enhances the standards customers should expect from Chartered firms, with the accredited solicitor estate agents committed to offering a better experience to every one of their customers and clients.

It is planned that the course will be rolled out to other SPCs in Scotland, making this higher standard of service for property buyers and sellers available across the country.

Ashley McInulty, head of member services at ESPC, commented: “Following on from a truly fantastic first year of the SPC Property Practice qualification, we are incredibly proud to be bringing the course back for a second year for a whole new cohort. It is truly a mark of the commitment that our member firms have to offering the very best service to their customers that so many more have signed up to undertake this certification.

“At ESPC, we remain dedicated to raising consumer standards in the property industry, and the SPC Property Practice certification, alongside our Chartered status option, can reassure customers that they are in the very best of hands when they appoint an ESPC solicitor estate agent to handle the sale or purchase of a property. Once again, we are delighted to be running the course in collaboration with The Law Society of Scotland and Edinburgh Conveyancers Forum, and we are so excited to see what the year ahead holds for our new students.”