Care Academy Blog

Wednesday, August 08, 2012

Following the news that we are to launch our first Skillsfirst accredited qualification 'Certificate in Preparing to Work in Adult Social Care', we have been inundated with questions about how best to integrate this into current induction training plans. Common questions include;

1. How does this fit with Common Induction Standards training?
2. What funding is available and how do we access it?
3. Does the qualification build credits towards Health and Social Diploma?

So in order to provide a little more clarity, we have provided the following flowchart along with some additional information to help contextualise why this qualification is so important.

Example Learner Pathway

Step 1

Learner completes Common Induction Standards (12 weeks).

Step 2*

On completion of Care Academy CIS, Learner is registered onto Level 2 Certificate 'Preparing to Work in Adult Social Care' qualification.

Step 3

Learner completes 9 unit assessments and has access to e-learning support modules as required.

Step 4

Completed assessments are automatically marked and feedback provided immediately. Assessor support is provided within system where appropriate.

Step 5

Upon successful completion of the qualification, learner achieves accredited qualification and employer can then claim up to £300 per qualification via Skills for Care WDF fund.

Step 6

Learner automatically achieves 20 credits towards a full Level 2 Diploma in Health and Social Care.

* Learners who have completed CIS outside of Care Academy can jump straight to step 2. Alternatively, learners who are not required to undertake CIS (i.e. Apprenticeships) can also register directly onto qualification.

Additional Notes

Skills for Care

SfC state: ‘The new standards (CIS) mirror exactly the new mandatory and core units for Health and Social Care diplomas, so that if the CIS are done well, any evidence of the knowledge gained will be direct evidence that can be used towards the diploma. So there is an incentive for learners and employers to ensure that the CIS are delivered effectively as this will save time when moving on to the diploma. To find out more visit www.skillsforcare.org.uk

Care Academy

The CIS programme available within Care Academy has been reviewed by national awarding organisation Skillsfirst and learners undertaking our programme will be equipped to undertake the assessments required to achieve  Level 2 certificate ‘Preparing to work in Adult Social Care’.

Care Quality Commission

CQC expects service providers to demonstrate good practice in meeting the essential standards of quality and safety and in delivering positive outcomes for people who use services. With specific reference to workforce training and development CQC state that “Care providers must show that they are complying with the relevant regulations covering staff competence and training. The ‘relevant regulations’ in this context mean the Common Induction Standards. Furthermore, on completion of CIS all care practitioners should be offered the opportunity to achieve a recognised vocational qualification, with the current recommended qualification being the Level 2 Diploma in Health and Social Care. To find out more visit www.cqc.org.uk

Workforce Development Fund

The Workforce Development Fund (WDF) is a funding stream from the Department of Health disseminated by Skills for Care via a network of organisations and employer led partnerships. WDF supports the achievement of qualification units and continuing professional development across the adult social care sector in England. Funding is available at a rate of £15.00 per credit for qualifications on the Qualification and Credits Framework (QCF). To find out more visit www.skillsforcare.org.uk

Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Skills for Care has released details of £2.4 million of enhanced funding for the completion of accredited dementia qualifications.

The Workforce Development Dementia Fund is designed to support the delivery of a national learning and development programme for the adult social care workforce supporting people with dementia.

Under current Workforce Development Funding, Skills for Care pay £15.00 per credit for completed units and will now also pay an additional £200.00 per QCF Award and £300.00 per QCF certificate (source www.skillsforcare.org.uk July 26 2012).

The list of eligable units and qualifications are listed below along with links to those currently available within Care Academy.

Workforce Development Dementia Fund 2012-13 acceptable units that are eligible

Unit number	Unit	Level	Credit
ACT 201	Understand activity provision within social care	2	2
ACT 202	Understand the benefits of engaging in activities in social care	2	2
ACT 204	Understand the delivery of activities in social care	2	2
ACT 206	Therapeutic approaches for activity provision in social care	2	2
ACT 207	Community involvement in activity provision	3	3
ACT 208	Understanding the benefits of reminiscence as an activity	2	2
ACT 301	Coordination of activity provision in social care	3	5
ACT 304	Understand the effects of ageing in activity provision	3	2
ACT 305	Activity provision in dementia care	3	3
ACT 306	Specialist activity provision in social care	3	2
ACT 307	Equality and diversity in activity provision	3	3
ADVO 301	Purpose and principles of independent advocacy	3	4
ADVO 305	Providing Independent Mental Capacity advocacy	4	12
CMH 301	Understand mental well being and mental health promotion	3	3
CMH 302	Understand mental health problems	3	3
DEM 201	Dementia awareness	2	2
DEM 202	The person centred approach to the care and support of individuals with dementia	2	2
DEM 204	Understand and implement a person centred approach to the care and support of individuals with dementia	2	3
DEM 205	Understand the factors that can influence communication and interaction with individuals who have dementia	2	2
DEM 207	Understand equality, diversity and inclusion in dementia care	2	2
DEM 209	Equality, diversity and inclusion in dementia care practice	2	3
DEM 210	Understand and enable interaction and communication with individuals with dementia	2	3
DEM 211	Approaches to enable rights and choices for individuals with dementia whilst minimising risks	2	3
DEM 301	Understand the process and experience of dementia	3	3
DEM 302	Understand and meet the nutritional requirements of individuals with dementia	3	3
DEM 304	Enable rights and choices of individuals whilst minimising risk	3	4
DEM 305	Understand the administration of medication to individuals with dementia using a person centred approach	3	2
DEM 308	Understand the role of communication and interactions with individuals who have dementia	3	3
DEM 310	Understand the diversity of individuals with dementia and the importance of inclusion	3	3
DEM 312	Understand and enable interaction and communication with individuals who have dementia	3	4
DEM 313	Equality, diversity and inclusion in dementia care practice	3	4
	Lead and manage dementia care (available from Sept 2012)	5	6
EOL 201	Awareness of working in end of life care	2	3
EOL 301	Understanding how to support individuals at end of life	3	3
EOL 302	Managing symptoms in end of life care	3	3
EOL 303	Understand advance care planning	3	3
EOL 304	Support the spiritual well being of individuals	3	3
EOL 305	Support individuals with loss and grief before death	3	2
EOL 306	Support individuals during the last days of life	3	5
EOL 307	Understand how to support individuals during the last days of end of life	3	3
EOL 308	End of life and dementia care	3	2
EOL 501	Lead and manage end of life care services 5 7
EOL 502	Lead a service that supports individuals through significant life events	5	4
HSC 2001	Provide support for therapy sessions	2	2
HSC 2003	Provide support to manage pain and discomfort	2	2
HSC 2012	Support individuals who are distressed	2	3
HSC 2022	Contribute to the care of a deceased person	2	3
HSC 2023	Contribute to supporting group care activities	2	3
HSC 2025	Support individuals undergoing healthcare activities	2	3
HSC 2031	Contribute to support of positive risk taking for individuals	2	3
HSC 3002	Provide support to continue recommended therapies	3	3
HSC 3008	Implement therapeutic group activities	3	4
HSC 3020	Facilitate person centred assessment, planning, implementation and review	3	6
HSC 3029	Support individuals with specific communication needs	3	5
HSC 3033	Support individuals during a period of change	3	4
HSC 3035	Support individuals who are bereaved	3	4
HSC 3047	Support use of medication in social care settings	3	5
HSC 3048	Support individuals at the end of life	3	7
HSC 3057	Work with families, carers and individuals during times of crisis	4	5
HSC 3062	Interact with and support individuals using telecommunications	3	5
HSC 3066	Support positive risk taking for individuals	3	4
LD 201	Understand the context of supporting individuals with learning disabilities	2	4
LD 202	Support person centred thinking and planning	2	5
LD 302	Support person centred thinking and planning	3	5
LD 305	Understand positive risk taking for individuals with disabilities	3	3
MH 201	Understanding assisting and moving individuals	2	2
PD OP 2.1	Understand physical disability	2	2
PD OP 3.1	Understand physical disability	3	3
SS MU 2.1	Introductory awareness of sensory loss	2	2
SS MU 3.1	Understand sensory loss	3	3
SS OP 2.1	Introductory awareness of models of disability	2	2
SS OP 2.4	Contribute to supporting individuals in the use of assistive technology	2	3
SS OP 3.1	Understand models of disability	3	3
SS OP 3.4	Support individuals in the use of assistive technology	4	4

Qualifications funded with enhanced payments

Activity provision qualifications

Level	Qualification title	Minimum credits	Unit funding*	Enhanced payment	Total funding
Level 2	Award Supporting activity provision in social care	8	£120	£200	£320
Level 3	Certificate Activity provision in social care	18	£270	£300	£570

Dementia qualifications

Level and type	Qualification title	Minimum credits	Unit funding*	Enhanced payment	Total funding
Level 2	Award Awareness of dementia	8	£120	£200	£320
Level 2	Certificate Dementia care	18	£270	£300	£570
Level 3	Award Awareness of dementia	11	£165	£200	£365
Level 3	Certificate Dementia care	21	£315	£300	£615
Level 2	Diploma Health and social care (adults) England - dementia pathway only	46	£690	£200	£890
Level 3	Diploma Health and social care (adults) England - dementia pathway only	58	£870	£200	£1070
Level 5 unit	Lead and manage dementia care (optional unit of Level 5 diploma, available from September 2012)	6	£90	£30	£120

End of life qualifications

Level	Qualification title	Minimum credits	Unit funding*	Enhanced payment	Total funding
Level 2	Award Awareness of end of life care	3	£45	£200	£245
Level 3	Award Awareness of end of life care	10	£150	£200	£350
Level 3	Certificate Working in end of life care	26	£390	£300	£690
Level 5	Certificate Leading and managing services to support end of life and significant life events	17	£255	£300	£555

*Unit funding is calculated by multiplying the minimum number of credits for each qualification by £15. The amount of unit funding is variable depending on the units selected for each qualification.

Friday, December 03, 2010

Care Academy is pleased to announce the launch of their refreshed 2010 Common Induction Standards.

After many months of hardwork, Care Academy has finally completed the cross-mapping exercise mentioned in our earlier post and completely updated our learning content to meet the requirements for the expanded 8 standards. Interestingly, the outcomes have increased from around 70 to 161 - a 130% increase and now includes dementia, nutrition, equality and diversity to name just a few. This will undoubtedly put increased pressure on training resources especially as induction still has to be completed within 12 weeks!

To further assist Care Academy clients' with the transition away from the old standards we are also launching an online CIS pre-assessment tool. The CIS pre-assessment tool will enable new employees to be comprehensively assessed and the outcomes used to determine their individual leaning plan. This will streamline the whole induction process and ensure prior learning and achievement is duly recognised.

To discuss the refreshed 2010 Common Induction Standards or to find out how Care Academy can help your organisation please contact us directly on Tel: 0161 228 1712 or use our online form

Monday, June 21, 2010

Skills for Care has announced the refreshed Common Induction Standards (CIS) designed to better reflect current policy and practice.

The new CIS have been expanded to include 8 standards (up from 6) but are still expected to be completed within the first 12 weeks of employment.

The new standards are as follows:

Standard 1 Role of the health and social care worker

Standard 2 Personal development

Standard 3 Communicate effectively

Standard 4 Equality and Inclusion

Standard 5 Principles for implementing duty of care

Standard 6 Principles of safeguarding in health and social care

Standard 7 Person centred support

Standard 8 Health and safety in an adult social care setting

Full details about the new standards can be found on Skills for Care website.

Skills for Care has confirmed that their will be a 12 month transition period to enable care providers to integrate the new standards.

Care Academy is currently undertaking a cross-mapping exercise with a view to updating our CIS e-learning programmes once this is complete. We anticipate having the refreshed CIS standards available for use by our clients by the end of this year, keeping us well ahead of the 12 month deadline. We will provide an interim update as progress is made towards developing the new standards.

Please feel free to contact us directly if you have any questions or would like to discuss the new CIS standards in greater detail.

Tuesday, February 02, 2010

Following the government's commitment in 2009 to develop a comprehensive strategy for Autism, the Autism Act 2009 became the first ever disability specific law in England.

The Autism Act will guarantee the introduction of a national autism strategy which will set out how services should be improved covering health, social care, employment and training. Importantly, it will place a legal obligation on local authorities and NHS bodies to meet specific requirements and is expected to be published by April 2010 with the accompanying legal guidance due by December 2010.

A key tenet of the Autism strategy is likely to be the development of specialist autism teams aimed at improving diagnosis, training and developing capacity to support adults with autism. As part of this momentum, Skills for Care has launched additional knowledge sets to include; 'Supporting People with an autistic spectrum condition'. These knowledge sets will be used to establish learning disability focused vocational qualifications as part of the new Qualifications and Credit Framework.

In response to the introduction of the Autism Strategy, Care Academy is pleased to announce the launch of our latest course; 'Supporting people with Autistic Spectrum Disorders' which has been mapped to the required Skills for Care knowledge set. In summary the course outline is as follows:

1. Introduction to Autism.
2. Laws and policies associated with supporting someone with Autistic Spectrum Condition.
3. Supporting someone with an Autistic Spectrum Condition.
4. Supporting the person with Autistic Spectrum Condition through good practice.

To find out more about our Autism e-learning course please call 0161 228 1712 or contact us via our on-line form.

Thursday, January 28, 2010

Launched in 2005 to help improve the standard of training for the social care workforce, the Common Induction Standards have proven to be a valuable resource. However, recent developments such as the Qualification Credit Framework (QCF) mean they are now due an update to ensure they are consistent with current guidelines and continue to provide underpinning knowledge in line with the proposed qualifications.

The first and perhaps most obvious change is the expansion from the current 6 standards to a much more comprehensive 8. Not surprisingly, some of the changes reflect topics which have been extensively reported in national press over the past twelve months, including both Dementia and Nutrition and Well-Being. Although the devil is always in the detail, we are currrently reviewing our Common Induction Standards programme to ensure Care Academy continues to offer a comprehensive and fully compliant package.

As part of the review process, Skills for Care is currently seeking feedback from employers, workers, service users and carers to ensure they remain fit for purpose. To access and participate in the consultation please visit Skills for Care.

Thursday, October 08, 2009

With the threat of swine flu now seeming no more than a distant memory, Infection Prevention and Control is still very much a hot topic for the Care Quality Commission. In their recent report; 'Working Together to Prevent and Control Infections', CQC suggest that infection prevention in care homes is inadequate, with many failing to follow guidance documents published by the Department of Health; 'Essential Steps' which provides practical advice on infection control and ' Infection control for care homes'.

In August, the Department of Health launched a consultation on revising the infection control guidance for care homes as part of a wider review on a new code of practice for health and social care providers on infection prevention and control. The draft code contains details of how providers should comply with registration requirements which will come into force for NHS providers in April 2010 and adult care providers in October 2010.

To help organisations prepare to meet their compliance requirements, Care Academy has decided to offer new clients free access to our dedicated 'Infection Prevention and Control' online learning until March 2010.

The course is designed to meet Skills for Care knowledge set for Infection Prevention and Control, covering:

• The cause and spread of infection.
• Preventing and controlling the spread of infection.
• Management of infectious outbreaks.
• Roles, responsibilities and boundaries (this module requires the student to 'understand the organisation's key policies and procedures').

Upon completion, users will be able to download a certificate of completion for their portfolios and managers will be able to access detailed management reports on-demand.

Additionally, as part of this promotion, we will also include access to our unique 'Policy-Safe' solution, enabling client's to deliver, track and confirm acceptance of key policies and procedures which is crucial to achieving compliance. 

The Infection Prevention and Control course will be made available to the first 25 organisations on a 'first come first served' basis and will include a maximium 50 user licence.

To discuss in more detail or to claim your free access, please contact us on 0161 228 1712 or via our online form.

Thursday, September 24, 2009

As we all probably already know, the Skills for Care Common Induction Standards set out what all new care workers need to know within the first 12 weeks of their employment. However, conversations with some of our key clients confirm our hunch that, not surprisingly many people are still slightly confused regarding the exact details and how to apply them. We've therefore posted the full Skills for Care Common Induction Standards on our site, along with a direct link to the original Skills for Care page so nobody can claim them haven't found them!

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Despite the fact that Training Strategy Implementation (TSI) funding has been available for some time, here at Care Academy we are still surprised that some organisations are still missing out on claiming around £75 per completed induction!

Whilst the reasons may well be many and varied, a common problem appears to be that often the responsibility for processing the claim is not centralised, rather it is the responsibility of managers and staff to complete and process the necessary paperwork. Hardly surprising then that this is often overlooked and vital funding is not claimed!

In order to address this problem, Care Academy has recently introduced an automated TSI funding feature within our system. This ensures that TSI forms are generated automatically upon completion of the induction and signed 'electronically' by the individual. This not only reduces the burden of administration but also ensures no missed funding opportunities. In fact, we recently demonstrated to one client that by using our system to centralise and claim all the funds they were entitled to the system would pay for itself within the first year and provide additional funds to support other training activities!

Our system has been approved by Skills for Care and should provide a welcome relief to over - worked staff.

To find out more about our TSI funding technology please contact us on 0161 228 1712 or via the online form.

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Skills for Care have launched the first ever comprehensive online guide to resources and funding for social care, with directions and help for social care employees in relation to funding for staff development.

This guide has been developed because within social care there is no single source of funding support for workforce development, education, training or assessment. Due to this some organisations miss out on funding opportunities which could help improve the training of their staff.

The guide has been designed to be easy to use by focusing on national funding sections and then dividing these into a regional contact list for local sources of funding. Furthermore, the guide will be continually refreshed to ensure all information is up-to-date with Skills for Care making a hard copy available form the end of January 2009 complete with contact telephone numbers for each entry.

Skills for Care CEO Andrea Rowe said:

"There’s no doubt many employers do find the often dizzying array of funding sources an obstacle to seeking money to train their staff which is exactly why we’ve produced this easy to use guide,"

"For the very first time we have brought together the wide array of resources and funding opportunities nationally and regionally into one easy to use online guide as we want every one of the 38,000 social care employers to be able to more easily access resources to support the development of their staff."

"If we are serious about making sure that every one of 1.5 million social care workers can access high quality training then we must make sure that employers can access resources and funding as easily as possible to make that aspiration a reality."

The resources and funding guide which can be accessed here.