Health and Social Care Level 2 Intermediate Apprenticeship

This apprenticeship is a good foundation for learners working in a health and social care setting. It covers a wide range of job roles on two pathways: the adult social care pathway, and the health care pathway.

This could mean working in the NHS, the private sector, local authorities or in the voluntary sectors.

You learn aspects of social care and health care. Social care is about helping people with a particular need, such as the disabled, the elderly or people with learning disabilities.

This type of care usually takes place in the home or in care homes or out in the community, and can include anything from helping people get dressed to transporting them to and from a residential home or taking them shopping. As an apprentice in social care, you could be a personal care assistant helping someone in their everyday life.

On the health care pathway, you could work in hospitals, the community, hospices or private clinics as a healthcare support worker or a healthcare assistant. You could support doctors or nurses, or help patients in hospital wards or their homes – serving food, making and changing beds and so on.

The apprenticeship framework is made up of three awards:

- Technical Certificate: Preparing to Work in Adult Social Care Level 2
- Health and Social Care Level 2 Diploma
- Key Skills English and Maths

The technical certificate covers the essential knowledge to enhance your performance in the workplace. It has nine mandatory units with a credit value of 21 credits. The units are:

- Communication
- Personal development
- Equality, diversity and inclusion
- Principles of safeguarding
- Duty of care
- The role of the social care worker
- Health and safety
- Person-centred approaches
- How to handle information

Health and Social Care Level 2 Diploma has a value of 46 credits. This comprises the following: nine core units from group A, one - two units from group B, six - seven optional units from group C. Further information on unit choice is available on request. In addition you will study Key Skills and Employer Rights and Responsibilities.

You will be allocated an assessor/tutor who will meet plan, and assess your work. A portfolio of evidence is built by you with guidance from your assessor. You will have sessions to cover the knowledge units.

Observations will also be used and take place in the workplace. You will also complete assignments to cover the knowledge based elements.

An apprenticeship is made up of an NVQ qualification as well as functional skills. You gain a recognised qualification while gaining valuable work experience.

You must already be working within the industry for a minimum of 30 hours per week (or 16 hours per week in exceptional circumstances) to gain a place on one of our apprenticeship programmes. Your employer will need to agree to you becoming an apprentice as these are work-based qualifications.

Upon application you will be invited in for an interview and an initial assessment to make sure that the course is right for you. You need to achieve Entry Level 3 at English initial assessment and Entry Level 3 at Maths initial assessment.

There are no other restrictions to becoming an apprentice except that you need to be over the age of 16 and to have been settled in the UK for at least the past three years.

You can progress onto the Health and Social Care Level 3 Advanced Apprenticeship.

The main difference between a level 2 Apprenticeship and a level 3 Apprenticeship for Health and Social Care is the level of responsibility you will hold and the role you will work.