Apprenticeship Handbook for Children, Young People and Families Practitioner Standard
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
APPRENTICESHIP HANDBOOK FOR CHILDREN, YOUNG PEOPLE AND FAMILIES PRACTITIONER STANDARD Which includes the academic award of Cert HE Working with Children, Young People and Families September 2020/2021 Course Leader: Sarah Tatham School of Social Work, Care and Community UCLan Campuses: Preston and Burnley Please read this Handbook in conjunction with the University’s Student Handbook. All course materials, including lecture notes and other additional materials related to your course and provided to you, whether electronically or in hard copy, as part of your study, are the property of (or licensed to) UCLan and MUST not be distributed, sold, published, made available to others or copied other than for your personal study use unless you have gained written permission to do so from the Dean of School. This applies to the materials in their entirety and to any part of the materials. 1 Contents 1 Welcome to the Apprenticeship in Children, Young People and Families Practitioner 2 Apprenticeships 3 Your Course 4 Structure of the academic aspect of your apprenticeship 5 Approaches to teaching and learning 6 Student Support 7 Assessment of academic award 8 Classification of academic award 9 Student Feedback 10 Appendices 10.1 Apprenticeship Standard (including mapping to course modules) 10.2 End Point Assessment Plan 10.3 Programme Specification(s) 10.4 Apprenticeship Template Commitment Statement 2 1. Welcome to the Children, Young People and Families Practitioner Apprenticeship Welcome to your apprenticeship at the University of Central Lancashire and in the School of Social Work, Care and Community. Apprenticeships are a partnership between industry and higher education institutions, designed to ensure we meet the needs of employers. The University of Central Lancashire has extensive links with employers and we have developed our apprenticeships with our industry partners and to meet local and national skills strategies and where relevant to contribute to skills shortages. Apprenticeships provide you with a challenging mix of off and on the job training, which equips you to progress and develop relevant skills and behaviors to meet your required industry standards and to succeed in your chosen profession. We understand the challenges of balancing work with study. Your apprenticeship will be supported throughout by regular meetings, on an agreed basis, between you, the University and your employer to ensure you receive continual review and feedback on your progress and performance. You will also benefit from all of the University support mechanisms and facilities as well as an academic advisor to support you during your apprenticeship programme. The University of Central Lancashire pays close attention to the quality of teaching and learning through ongoing review and monitoring and feedback from staff, apprentices and employers to find further ways to improve and enhance your apprenticeship. This Handbook has been created to provide you with important information and guidance on a broad range of subjects, ranging from teaching and work-based learning practices, to the academic regulations of the University. We hope that this will help you settle quickly into life as a University of Central Lancashire apprentice and answer some of your initial questions. Please note: in this handbook the terms “apprentice” and “student/learner” are used to mean you, the apprentice. 2. Apprenticeships Apprenticeships achieve a relevant higher level qualification as a core component of the apprenticeship. You study while working with an employer and an apprenticeship programme is paid for by your employer and the Government. The academic course and the apprenticeship are designed to a national standard for a job role and often comes with professional qualifications and accreditation. This apprenticeship includes the academic award of Cert HE Working with Children, Young People and Families. The academic course has been developed to provide you with the knowledge and skills required to be a Children, Young People and Families Practitioner. Further details of this apprenticeship standard and the end point assessment plan are included later in this handbook. These are really important documents that you should make yourself familiar with as everything you will do during your period as an apprentice should link to the requirements within these documents. 2.1 Apprenticeship Agreement and Commitment Statement Apprentices will normally be employed for a minimum of 30 hours a week. Academic learning fits around your work commitments through an agreed ‘off-the-job’ course of study. You will split your time between academic and work-based learning, and will be employed throughout, gaining a higher level qualification from the University while earning a wage, and getting real on-the-job experience in your chosen profession. You will spend 80% of your time learning skills on-the-job and for the remaining 20% you will be undertaking off the job training with 3 UCLan. The 20% off- the-job element is measured over the whole period of your apprenticeship and academic course as opposed to a traditional term-time/academic year. You should therefore expect to be undertaking off-the-job activities even when not attending the university. The apprenticeship is a tripartite relationship that builds upon: • commitment from your employer, with the intention and capability of employing you to completion of your training and EPA and securing your longer term future • commitment from you as an apprentice, to be motivated to learn and work diligently to complete your apprenticeship • high quality off-the-job training and support, advice and guidance for work-based learning delivered by the University • an initial assessment of any recognised prior learning and the job role, mapped against the standard • the apprentice agreement and commitment statement which has been signed between your employer, you the apprentice and the University, which sets out details of the training provided and each of our roles and responsibilities Apprentice agreement and Commitment Statement We will have already confirmed your eligibility and agreed any relevant prior learning before signing the apprentice agreement and commitment statement. The purpose of the apprentice agreement is to: • identify the skills, trade or occupation for which you are being trained, and • confirm the qualifying apprenticeship standard that you are following. The commitment statement sets out the following aspects of the apprenticeship to clarify how the apprenticeship will work. The commitment statement will be signed by the University, your employer and you, the apprentice, and will contain the following: • the planned content, learning outcomes, assessment plan and schedule for your apprenticeship training and EPA • roles and responsibilities of the University, your employer and you as an apprentice, and arrangements for how the three parties will work together • the process for you and your employer to resolve any queries or complaints regarding the apprenticeship, including quality. A template commitment statement is shown at the back of this handbook. During your time as an apprentice you will receive feedback on your progress from your employer mentor and there will also be tripartite reviews between yourself, your employer and UCLan staff. These meetings will help you manage your progress through your apprenticeship and ensure you are challenged and receive feedback on your progress. It will also be an opportunity to discuss your Individual Learning Plan (ILP) and to review your development of the knowledge, skills and behaviours required by your particular role as defined within the standard. You will also be assigned a Outreach Educator who will visit you and your employer in the work-place (at a date and time agreed by all parties) to discuss and monitor progress with on-the-job elements of the degree apprenticeship. A minimum of two workplace-based visits will take place each year, supplemented by meetings conducted by telephone/skype. 4 To enhance each Apprentice’s learning on the programme, and to ensure the employer has access to auditable evidence, the Apprentice uses OneFile, an online, secure information management system and e-portfolio. This provides Apprentices and their employer with easy access to information on progress, attendance, assessment feedback and off the job training. This secure portal enables Apprentices and employers easy access to ILPs and e- portfolios 3. Your Course 3.1 Rationale, aims and learning outcomes of the course This course has been designed to provide you with the underpinning theoretical knowledge and practical learning opportunities to develop your career in working with children, young people and families. You will develop the behaviours, knowledge and skills you need to achieve positive and sustainable change in children’s lives, and to make a real difference to those you work with. At the end of the taught course you will receive a Cert HE in Working with Children, Young People and Families, this will prepare you for your Endpoint Assessment for your Level 4 Apprenticeship as a Children, Young People and Families Practitioner in the Community. The aims and some of the key learning outcomes of this programme are outlined below. Aims • To develop learners’ professional practice, identity and awareness of their own and others’ roles, duties and responsibilities • To enable learners to assess needs, incorporating the voices of children, young people and their families,