Health and Social Care Key Stage 4 Curriculum Overview

‘Caring for people and communities’

Modern society is ever evolving in terms of ‘societal norms’ however human development and how we treat and care for one another continues to be at its core. Health and Social Care prepares our students to discover the impact of positive and negative human development and how to critically analyse how these factors affect our day to day lives. Through investigation of health and well-being and how our lifestyle choices effect how healthy we are, students are able to talk about areas and raise awareness of signs and symptoms of: abuse, addiction, illness and mental health. Our diverse range of student’s supplements learning by allowing group discussions to be engaging, promoting time for powerful knowledge and cultural capital to be explored. Through this we are able to develop and challenge our learner’s mindsets. The Health and Social Care course takes on an engaging, practical and inspiring approach to learning and assessment. Plans to improve health and wellbeing along with overcoming any barriers are explored and an understanding of the different Care Values within Health and Social Care are developed in order to enable students to learn how to work within any health or social environment and or understand why each one is important.

Our curriculum will ensure that all of our students will have the opportunity to develop key skills that provide an aptitude in health and social care, such as interpreting data to assess an individual’s health, gaining insights into effective use of skills, processes and attitudes in the sector such as human growth and development, health and social care services, and factors affecting people’s health and wellbeing. Reflective practice through questioning and the development of skills and techniques will allow learners to respond to feedback and identify areas for improvement.  In addition, the course equips students with a sound, specialist and realistic understanding of how to meet the needs of individuals, whilst challenging stereotypes and discrimination. The study of care values is at the heart of Health and Social Care which develops skills such as empathy, compassion, commitment, tolerance and empowerment. This enables our students to become educated citizens and contributes to society in a positive way. The curriculum challenges students to think abstractly, work collaboratively and problem solve to develop curiosity and the desire for knowledge. 

Curriculum Implementation:

Exam Board and Link to Specification

We follow the Pearson specification for Health and Social Care. Please follow this link: https://qualifications.pearson.com/en/subjects.html 

How you will be assessed in BTEC Health and Social Care

Component 1   

  • Human Lifespan Development

  • Internally assessed

  • Authorised assignment brief 30%     

 Component 2

  • Health and Social Care Services and Values

  •  Internally assessed

  • Authorised assignment brief 30%     

Component 3   

  • Health and Wellbeing   

  • Externally assessed

  • Builds on Components 1 & 2

  • Authorised assignment brief 40%                 

Enrichment opportunities:

  • Achievement at Level 2 provides a suitable foundation for further study within the sector, supporting progression on to other vocational qualifications at Level 3 –Post 16.

  • Participating in an external placement. This will be within the local community.

  • Confidence building opportunities- through participating in role plays.

  • Potential opportunities to support younger pupils within school.

    Useful links to support learning :

www.nhs.uk, National Health Service −information on NHS services and support, inherited disease, and healthy lifestyle choices.

www.ageuk.org.uk/ Age UK – is a charity for older people. It provides information on factors and events that impact on older people and explains sources of support.

www.nutrition.org.uk ‘Healthy eating’, British Nutrition Foundation − includes pages on healthy eating tips accessible for students aged 14–16.

www.bbc.co.uk/education − a series of short PSHE and citizenship clips (under ‘Healthy lifestyles’) produced for a young audience to stimulate thought and discussion.

www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/careers- career ideas and information.

www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/i-am/considering-or-university/studying-be-allied-health-professional - Information on a wide range of careers within health care.

www.nhs.uk/NHSEngland/AboutNHSservices/dentists/Pages/nhs-dental-charges.aspx ‘NHS dental services explained’, NHS Choices − useful to raise awareness of costs applied to NHS services.

www.nhs.uk/Livewell/Childrenwithalearningdisability/Pages/Whatislearningdisability.aspx ‘What is a learning disability’, NHS Choices − a resource that gives a clear overview of common learning disabilities that individuals may experience.

www.rnib.org.uk/ ‘Home page’ Royal National Institute of Blind People – a resource that provides information about support for people with sight loss.

www.nhs.uk/Livewell/Goodfood/Pages/the-eatwell-guide.aspx ‘The Eatwell Guide’, NHS − provides the information needed to understand the different elements of a balanced diet.

 Studying Health and Social Care is helpful if you are thinking about careers as a:

  • Nurse

  • Counsellor

  • Personal trainer

  • Nursery worker

  • Primary care graduate

  • Mental health worker

  • Youth worker

  • School Teacher

  • Prison officer

  • Probation officer

  • Midwife

  • Physiotherapist

  • Support worker

  • Care home support worker

  • Occupational therapist

  • Community worker