Fulston Manor Sixth Form A Level Brochure

Health and Social Care

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Exam Board: Edexcel (code YKN97)

Qualification: Level 3 Extended Certificate (worth up to 56 UCAS points)

Why take this course?

Health and Social Care is a very popular vocational area with a wide range of opportunities for young people who have an interest in working in and understanding the sector. There is a huge demand for well qualified health and social care professionals in society and demographic factors indicate that this demand will continue to grow. Some of these careers are in the following fields:

Health Care – nursing, midwifery, radiographer, physiotherapy and occupational therapy. Social Care – social worker, support worker, residential care worker, community care worker.

Many of our former students have progressed to higher education courses and others have embarked on health and social care careers upon leaving the Sixth Form. Subjects that particularly complement Health and Social Care at Advanced Level are Sociology, Psychology, Biology and Sports Studies.

Aims of this course:

To equip students with knowledge and understanding of health and social care occupations. To engender an understanding of the skills, attributes and and values essential to working in health and social care. To develop students’ awareness of contemporary issues within the health and social care fields.

Course structure and content:

AAQ (Alternative Academic Qualification) Equivalent to 1 A Level There are 3 Mandatory Units which are equally weighted counting as 75% of the final grade: Human Lifespan and Development – externally assessed - exam Human Biology and Health externally assessed - exam Principles of Health and Social Care Practice – internally assessed – Pearson Set Assignment

There is one optional unit – counting as 25% of the final grade. Internally assessed – Pearson Set Assignment

Assessment:

Assessment takes place via a combination of Pearson Set Assignments (medium controlled assessments rather than coursework) and external examinations. The Units are equally weighted – each 25% of the final grade.

Entry Requirements:

To be accepted onto this course students should have at least 5 GCSEs at grades 9-5 (or equivalent). Strong essay writing skills are very advantageous and students would be expected to have a GCSE of at least a grade 5 in English Language. Students should be skilled independent workers because of the large amount of coursework involved in this course. Note: This course is yet to be fully ratified by the exam board for a September 2025 start and therefore we may need to withdraw this course prior to starting September 2025 and would inform all students as soon as possible to select an alternative choice.