Specialist Community Public Health Nursing (Health Visiting) Higher Apprenticeship
18 months Full Time

This programme offers a varied range of assessment strategies in order to help maximise learning and provide opportunities to develop a wide selection of skills that can be transferred into specialist practice. Modules include;

• Fundamental Skills for Public Health  
• Building Community Capacity
• Research and Evidence for Contemporary Practice
• Advancing and Leading Specialist Practice
• Community Prescribing

To achieve the Specialist Community Public Health Nurse standards apprentices must successfully pass both the practice elements and the academic components of the programme. The assessment strategy reflects both formative and summative components. Practice-based assessment will be ongoing throughout the 18 months of the programme supported by a practice assessment document and gives apprentices the opportunity to engage in self-assessment and apprentice-led learning. Apprentices will work closely with practice assessors and practice supervisors, who will facilitate learning and provide on-going formative evaluation of progression. There will be a formal review of progression during practice progress meetings during each semester of the programme. The practice assessor and academic assessor will complete the summative assessment of the achievement of the NMC standards of proficiency, which will be on a pass/fail basis.

End Point Assessment

The Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (2020) state that - Rigorous, robust and independent End Point Assessment (EPA) gives employers confidence that apprentices can actually perform in the occupation they have been trained in and can demonstrate the duties, and knowledge, skills and behaviours set out in the occupational standard. For details of the current EPA for your standard please consult the IFATE Apprenticeship standards / Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education webpage here.

Apprentices will spend 50% of time in the practice setting and 50% accessing academic learning. Academic learning is in the form of online resources, taught seminars/workshops and apprentice led action learning sets.

Learning is scaffolded from online resources which link directly to taught sessions then followed up with apprentice led action learning sets in order to promote academic enquiry, professional curiosity and a critical approach to evidence based practice. Seminars and taught sessions are delivered with all apprentices on the programme to promote shared learning across the public health spectrum. Action learning sets are field specific to allow greater shared learning from the field of practice.

Apprentices will attend practice 3 days every week and university two days every week. Some weeks will have block time for study or university. Study weeks and holidays are set within the programme structure over the 18 month programme. Apprentices are required to work full time in practice for the last 3 months of this programme. This provides a 10 week consolidated practice period where apprentices will lead on their own small caseload.

Resources will be available on the electronic Blackboard Ultra portal. Apprentices will be able to access library resources from the student portal as well as by attending campus.

Apprentices will be allocated a personal tutor in university who will support pastoral welfare and general enquiries. Apprentices will also be allocated an Academic Assessor in University who in partnership with practice assessors will guide and assess learning and progress.

In practice apprentices will be allocated practice supervisors who will help facilitate learning and a practice assessor who will be responsible for assessment in partnership with the apprentice and university.

In partnership with Northumbria University, an employer will support the apprentice at work to achieve their apprenticeship. Whilst studying, the apprentice will be required to work full-time, and will be supported through learning at work to achieve the requirements of the apprenticeship standard.

The programme is 18 months full time, with 50% of time allocated to on-the-job practice learning in an area related directly to Health Visiting practice, and 50% to support academic learning.

The placement area is decided by the employing organisation, and apprentices may work across more than one placement area, all placements will be within the field of Health Visiting. This enables apprentices to gain specialist public health practice skills and be assessed against the standards for specialist community public health nursing.

The programme team have developed a robust supportive framework to support apprentices pastorally as we recognise that performance is better when supported. Apprentices will be supported by a personal tutor who provides pastoral help, guidance and support for the duration of the programme. Module leads also provide this help, particularly in connection with specific issues relating to their module. Apprentices will also be supported in the clinical setting by practice assessors, practice supervisors and practice placement facilitators (PPF) and as part of the apprentice programme there will be tripartite meetings with the apprentice, the employer and the University. There will normally be 4 tripartite meetings each year to discuss progress and any issues that may have a negative impact on the ability to complete the required standards.  

The employer covers all tuition fees for the apprentice, the total payment required depends on the organisation’s apprenticeship levy status.

Apprentices studying an apprenticeship do not pay any tuition fees, however, as they are in full-time employment they do not have student status and therefore are not entitled to apply for student finance. 

To discuss the fees for this apprenticeship in detail or to explore signing an agreement with the university, complete the enquiry form below and someone from our Business and Enterprise team will be in touch shortly.

Recruitment for the Specialist Community Public Health Nursing apprenticeship is directly through an employing organisation such as NHS or local authority.

Apprentices will be required to complete a university application once they have secured a place following interview with an employing organisation. The university application process is to register the entry requirements for the programme and enrol the apprentice with the University.

Northumbria University guides both employer and apprentice through the application and funding process and will be on hand to assist you during the apprenticeship journey.

To start the application process for either current employees or new recruits contact our Sales and Business Development team today by email or complete our online enquiry form. Alternatively, you can call 0191 215 6300.

All apprentices are required to be in full-time employment to study the Specialist Community Public Health Nursing Higher Apprenticeship. If you are interested in studying this apprenticeship and you are in current full-time employment complete our online enquiry form.

If you are not in full-time employment but would like to study this apprenticeship programme, visit our vacancies page for information on all apprenticeship opportunities currently available.

Skills Assessment

Before entry onto the programme, all Apprenticeship applicants must complete an Initial Skills Assessment which maps their prior knowledge against the apprenticeship standard. This is part of the University’s regulatory funding obligations. The purpose of an apprenticeship is to provide new learning and the skills assessment will be used to establish whether we need to tailor your programme in any way to account for your previous qualifications or experience. It also provides a benchmark against which to map your progress on the programme.