Health & Social Care

Qualification
Level 3 AAQ Cambridge Advanced National Certificate / Extended Certificate        

This qualification will give you an introduction to the health and social care sector and would support other vocational and academic qualifications with a view to progress to Higher Education or further study.

What does the course involve?

The Extended Certificate is an Alternative Academic Qualification (AAQ), which means it is equivalent to an A Level.

The AAQ is split over two years. In the first year you must complete one examined unit and two non-examined assessments (NEA - also known as coursework). This will result in the certificate and is equivalent to an AS Level.

Examination: Principles of Health and Social Care
NEA: Person centred approach to care
NEA: Supporting people with mental health conditions

In the second year you will complete three further units, and at the end of the two years you will be awarded the Extended Certificate, equivalent to an A Level.

Examination: Anatomy and Physiology for Health and Social Care

The two NEA units in this year will be taken from the following possibilities:

• Supporting people with long term physiological conditions
• Investigating public health
• Supporting people in relation to sexual health, pregnancy and postnatal health
• Supporting healthy nutrition and lifestyles

Teaching methods

The course will give you an understanding of health and social care in the wider context of different environments and settings where care takes place, the importance of effective communication in health and social care, the importance of legislation in health and social care and how to deliver a person-centred approach in the care given. You will also be taught transferable skills such as communication, research, planning and organisation. Role play is often used to enhance learning. Learning is supported using MS Teams so you can independently access any resources relevant to your studies. This will also help you to prepare for studies in Higher Education.  

Requirements 

To study Level 3, you must have GCSE English Language at grade 4 or above, GCSE Mathematics at grade 4 or above, Science at grade 4 or above, and at least one other GCSE at grade 4 or above. Functional Skills Level 2 will be considered. It would be advantageous to have completed an OCR Level 2 Cambridge Technical in Health and Social Care or an OCR Level 1 or 2 Cambridge National in Health and Social Care.

Assessment methods

Certificate: 60% coursework, 40% examination
Extended certificate: 60% coursework, 40% examination       

Duration

1 year for Certificate
2 years for Extended Certificate

Where will it take me?

To achieve the full A Level equivalent, students who successfully complete the Certificate course will be given the opportunity to progress to the Level 3 Extended Certificate in Health and Social Care.

This qualification will provide you with the skills, knowledge and understanding to progress to Higher Education on a health and social care-related programme such as Health and Social Care, Nursing, Social Work or Early Childhood Studies.