Health and Social Care


A lot of healing took place, this is the kind of afternoon that makes my job worthwhile"

- Key Care Worker -

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Curriculum Vision

Our Health and Social Care BTEC curriculum gives all our students an understanding and insight into the world of health work, specifically the ways in which the health and social care sector is established, and how it benefits society. Our curriculum makes our students think independently and curiously about the way the health care services works how heath care professions work on a day-to-day basis, assessing wellbeing and individualised health are plans.  We provide our students with opportunities to analyse existing legislations, develop their analytical skills when it comes to health and apply their understanding to novel situations and case studies. 

 

The Health & social care department believes that every individual pupil can achieve personal excellence. The department aims to develop pupils understanding of people, mental health, discrimination, the scientific process of understanding human behaviour and the diverse societies in which they live in. The department also aims to develop students understanding of the influence of their setting and environment on human activity by studying a continuum of historical and contemporary perspectives and how society developed alongside these. The curriculum to equip our students with a firm understanding of how society is organised, how we interpret the word around us and our perception of other people with an understanding and awareness of how other cultures different from our own live and work together. Our department aims to equip our students with a deep understanding of empirical research, knowledge and understanding and to continually evaluate and question the evidence through self-reflection.  

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Curriculum Vision

 

Term 1

Term 2

Term 3

Year 10

Component 1 – Human Lifespan Development

Students must carefully consider relevant factors and how their impact changes over time, including which factors are most important at each of the three chosen life stages. Learners may explain how and why a particular social factor was important in one life stage but much less so in another.

Component 1 – Human Lifespan Development

Students will assess the impact that the same life event had on everyone, classifying impacts clearly in relation to PIES They must comment on how well the two individuals adapted to the life event, with supporting evidence.

Component 2 – Health & Social Care Services & Barriers to Accessing them

Students must demonstrate all seven of the care values stated in the essential content in a health or social care context, simulated or real. Learners must produce a review that shows the ability to identify for themselves both positive and negative aspects of their own performance, as well as then commenting on the feedback they received in terms of which parts they agree with or disagree with, and why.

Year 11

Component 3 – Health & Wellbeing

Learners will design a health and wellbeing improvement plan that clearly describes recommendations, with specific and realistic short- and long-term targets, and sources of support that are linked to the targets. They provide a clear and convincing justification for the plan in terms of how it links to needs, wishes and circumstances of the individual. They clearly describe potential obstacles that might arise in keeping to the plan and make realistic suggestions for how these might be overcome.

Component 2 – Health & Wellbeing

Students must demonstrate all seven of the care values stated in the essential content in a health or social care context, simulated or real. Learners must produce a review that shows the ability to identify for themselves both positive and negative aspects of their own performance, as well as then commenting on the feedback they received in terms of which parts they agree with or disagree with, and why.

Component 2 – Health & Social Care Services & Barriers to Accessing them

Students must assess the suitability of health and social care services for meeting the needs of individuals in a scenario given by the teacher. This requires learners to make an overall judgement, which could result in rankings or scores, together with clear information about how they have reached this judgement.

       

Sixth Form

Working in Health & Social Care

Enquiries in Current Research 

Learners will make critical, rationalised judgements about the techniques and skills evidenced within the research around the issue/enquiry and its use in the health and social care sector. Their use of secondary research techniques and skills will demonstrate their understanding of the wider issue in context. They will evaluate the purpose, actions and results of the research against the principles of validity and reliability and demonstrate a thorough understanding of how feasible ethical solutions to research can be planned and delivered in context. Learners will form conclusions linked to the implications of the research for future practice/provision in the sector. These conclusions, and any recommendations for adaptations, will be justified and articulated professionally.

Working in Health & Social Care

Enquiries in Current Research 

Learners will draw on and bring together their knowledge and understanding about the role of duty of care and safeguarding procedures in promoting safe practice in a health or social care setting. Learners will apply their understanding to more complex situations where they will recognise and respond to evidence or concerns about abuse and neglect in the setting, for example where different agencies may need to respond to concerns about abuse and neglect. Learners must reach reasoned and valid judgements on the significance of a duty of care and safeguarding procedures in promoting safe practice in health and social care.

Safe Practise & Principles in Health & Social Care 

Promoting Public Health

Learners will argue concisely and professionally to evaluate how far public health policy has met its aims in a specific demographic area. Learners must show in-depth understanding of strategies used to develop policy and how these, and population health status monitoring, are used to create public health policy. Learners will use their research to deepen their understanding and arrive at valid conclusions on the socio-economic impact of improving the health of the population. Learners must draw together their understanding of the four factors affecting health and must include one example from each. They must refer to local demographic data and compare this to national data to make suitable justifications and recommendations.

University and Careers

University

Health and Social Care gives our students a strong foundation for further study of a range of academic subjects at degree level. The knowledge our students learn can be applied to all aspects of society as they provide a variety of academic skills especially thinking critically about the world. Students can progress and take a BSc in Social Sciences. It is an interdisciplinary degree that gives students the theoretical tools and knowledge to better understand the social-political world, why social inequality persists and how life experiences intersect with wider social structures, such as 'race', class and gender, including the understanding of issues such as around bereavement, depression and mental illness, what it means to have a positive mental health and the health care system that underpins our society. 

Careers

About 3 million people work in health or social care. Health care roles include doctors, pharmacists, nurses, midwives and health care assistants. While social care roles include care assistants, occupational therapists, counsellors and administrative roles. Together they account for nearly one in ten of all paid jobs in the UK. Demand for both health and social care is likely to rise so they will continue to play a key role in UK society, and the demand for people to fill these vital jobs will increase. Therefore, all students on this course are actively encouraged to choose a Health and Social Care related work experience or extracurricular placement where possible. Many of our students go into social work , community projects, charity work, welfare advisors and other areas of social services. The knowledge and skills that students will build on this subject course are highly valued in today's world of work and will build their capacity as a thinker, communicator and analyst. It will enable the student to become a competent, critical and responsible researcher of the social world with the ability to make informed choices about research methods and apply them competently.

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The Health and Social Care Team

Ms Yovani Cunningham – Teacher of Health & Social Care

Ms Melanie O'Brien – Head of Social Sciences

For more information on our curriculum, please email mel.obrien@walthamstow-academy.org for a copy of our department curriculum handbook.