Work-Based Learning

Supporting students in health and social care placements

The Faculty of Medicine, Health and Social Care offers a wide range of courses, including Apprenticeship opportunities. Our professional courses require practice learning placements in a wide range of settings that include acute and community NHS Trusts, primary care, social care, social services and within private, voluntary and independent organisations.

Practice learning placements provide students the opportunity to experience the reality of their chosen profession, developing the skills, knowledge and expertise required to become a registrant. Placements are essential to the development of our future health and social care workforce, and everyone involved in practice learning plays a vital role in this. We value the relationships with our practice partners who make a significant contribution to supporting learning and assessment in practice. This website has been created as a resource to support practice learning.

Excellence in work-based learning: our placement strategy

The quality of the learning experience in practice plays a critical role in developing and sustaining the workforce. The Faculty of Medicine, Health and Social Care works collaboratively with placement providers to ensure there is a consistent approach to practice learning that meets regulatory body and course requirements.

We ensure that this Faculty:

• Contributes to the effective delivery and operation of high-quality placement learning experiences for all students.
• Develops shared governance for work-based learning that drives improvement, enhances achievement, and promotes good practice.
• Leads upon, facilitates, and supports innovations, grows expertise and our reputation in practice learning.

Benefits of providing placements

• Students can make a significant contribution to your organisation and be involved in different types of projects.
• Involvement in practice learning offers you the opportunity to pass on your own knowledge and skills to your student and to learn from them, about the latest research and changes in best practice.
• Having students in your workplace enhances a culture of learning, stimulates quality improvement and promotes evidence-based practice.
• Student placements are valuable in supporting recruitment and retention, students are our future workforce.
• You will be able to provide your staff with opportunities to develop their supervision and assessment skills, implement evidence-based practice and continuing professional development.
• In most cases, you will be able to claim the placement tariff for each placement you provide: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/healthcare-education-and-training-tariff-2024-to-2025/education-and-training-tariffs-2024-to-2025