Health and Social Care

Children, Young People and Families Practitioner Apprenticeship (Level 4)

Apprenticeship
Health and Social Care
Flexible
Study Mode

Apprenticeship

Start Date, Location

Aug 2025, Flexible

Duration

2 years

Cost

£.00

per academic year.
View our facilities & work

Course Overview

If you’re working as a practitioner in a children’s home. residential special school or a secure children’s home this course is designed for you. The children might be living on their own or in a larger group. You will take the lead in developing and delivering children’s placement plan and will work with each child to support their health, education, social and day to day needs, playing a significant role in helping them to thrive, fulfil their potential and stay safe. You will demonstrate a passion to care for and about children, young people and families. You will be skilled in recognising and assessing the complex needs that children, young people and families often present. At the end of the apprenticeship the high quality of your practice will be making a real difference to those that you work with.

Within this apprenticeship you will also need to complete the NCFE/CACHE Level 3 Diploma in Residential Child Care.
Please note that the College do not offer the pathway for Children, Young People and Families Practitioner within the Community.

More information

This apprenticeship is made up of the Level 4 Children, Young People and Families Practitioner Apprenticeship Standard and the Level 3 Diploma in Residential Childcare.

In apprenticeships, Knowledge, Skills, and Behaviours (KSBs) are essential components that define the competencies an apprentice must demonstrate.

The Level 4 Children. Young People and Families Practitioner Apprenticeship Standard is made of Knowledge, Skills and Behaviours. These are assessed at the end of the Apprenticeship in an End Point Assessment and cover mandatory topics such as:

– Respecting and valuing children and young people to keep them safe.
– Being affirming and working with children and young people to help them make a positive difference to their lives
– Communication that enables the voice of the child, young person or family to be heard
– Understanding the multiple factors that contribute to uncertainty in the lives of children, young people and families.
– Ensuring equality, rights, diversity and cultural differences are valued and supported.
– Understanding and acting on safeguarding risk factors in line with local and national requirements
– Promoting the development of skills for children, young people and families to successfully manage risk for themselves.
– Understanding child, adolescent and adult development, including the spectrum of needs and how they can be met.
– Identifying and managing evidence-based approaches and interventions
– Theories and guidelines underpinning your duties, responsibilities, boundaries and ethical nature of your job
– The role of professional judgement and analysis in complex situations
– Systems and policy frameworks such as education, health, care, employment, criminal justice, special educational needs and disabilities.

Within the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare learners must achieve 53 credits from the mandatory units and a minimum of 8 credits from at least 3 optional units. Your assessor will support you with choosing your optional units.

The mandatory units cover core knowledge and skills, while the optional units will allow you to choose from a variety of areas to tailor the qualification to your needs and interests, and to reflect the context of your work.

– Child and young person development
– Safeguarding and protection of children and young people
– Understand how to support children and young people who have experienced harm or abuse
– Effective communication and information handling
– Support risk management
– Assessment and planning with children and young people
– Support group living
– Understand how to support positive outcomes for children and young people
– Support attachment and positive relationships for children and young people
– Support the well-being and resilience of children and young people
– Support children and young people to achieve their learning potential
– Support children and young people to manage their health
– Support the development of socially aware behaviour
– Engage in professional development
– Support the rights, diversity and equality of children and young people
– Participate in teams to benefit children and young people

Some optional units are knowledge only and can be completed with a written assignment, others have some written elements as well as skills that must be observed by your assessor. If you choose an optional unit with skills as part of it, you must be able to demonstrate these when observed.

There is no college attendance for this apprenticeship. Learning will take place both within the workplace and in your non-working time. You must be able to study independently outside of the workplace. Your practical skills will regularly be observed by your assessor.
Before enrolment all applicants will have an informal interview where we will outline the commitment, engagement and self-study requirements of the apprenticeship, and the resources and support available from the college. Applicants will have the opportunity to discuss their learning needs and to ask any questions.

At Level 4 this is a higher-level apprenticeship. A strong level of written English is essential as learners will need to understand complex information and produce written work that goes beyond description, you may need to include analysis, evaluation and critical discussion in your work. A GCSE grade C/4 or Functional Skills Level 2 or equivalent in English is an entry requirement for this apprenticeship. If you do not have a formal qualification in English, don’t worry, please reach out to us to complete an English assessment with us.

You must be over the age of 19 years and have passed your probationary period before you can begin this apprenticeship.

If your employer has agreed to support you on this apprenticeship, contact the Apprenticeship team and we’ll get you started. Email apprenticeships@wiltshire.ac.uk or call 0845 345 2235.
The Level 4 Children, Young People and Families Practitioner Apprenticeship is not a taught course; you must be able to study in your own time. You will be assigned an assessor who will provide you with resources and support to complete each unit through a range of assessments.

Apprentices will be assessed and prepared for the Apprenticeship End Point Assessment by their assessor through a range of methods, including written assignments, direct observation in the workplace, professional discussions, creative tasks and the preparation of a portfolio of evidence which will be used in the End Point Assessment.

The End Point Assessment is the final assessment an apprentice undertakes to complete their apprenticeship and is carried out by an independent assessor.

It consists of an observation of practice and a competence interview underpinned by the portfolio of evidence.
On successful completion of the End Point Assessment the apprentice will be awarded the Level 4 Children, Young People and Families Practitioner Apprenticeship with a Pass or Distinction.

Apprentices must record a minimum of 466 hours of learning and development, this is called ‘Off the Job Training’, which must take place during your paid working hours. This can include work shadowing, training, workshops, online learning, mentoring, time for assignment writing or revision. In fact, any learning and development that supports learning on the apprenticeship can be recorded.
Learners will use an e-portfolio for the duration of their course. Access to a lap-top, computer or other device with Internet, camera and audio is required. Learners will not be able to complete this course on a phone or small tablet due to the different types of assessments that must be completed.

If you do not have a suitable Internet connected device, your employer may be able to apply for a loan of one from Wiltshire Digital Drive www.wiltshiredigitaldrive.org

There is no required textbook for this course, your assessor will provide you with many resources, but you will also need to carry out your own research for written assignments. Our Learning Resource Centres have a range of books and resources to support this course. The cost of any other books or resources for this course will be met by the student.

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