In a nutshell
What are the qualifications about?
Promoting good mental health and well-being is important throughout life but often in the past older people have been excluded from mental health initiatives. City & Guilds offers two vocational qualifications in Promoting the mental health and well-being of older people which have been developed in collaboration with Age Concern.
Who are they for?
They're for anyone who works or wants to work with older people - perhaps in health, housing, social care, education, sport and leisure, or the criminal justice system.
The qualifications aim to build on your previous work and life experiences and are therefore relevant if you are new to your role or if you already have experience of working with older people.
You might already be working in a voluntary or paid role, although anyone can work towards these qualifications.
Why choose City & Guilds?
A City & Guilds qualification is proof that you have the right skills to do your job well - which is why so many employers look for people who have one. You can be confident your qualification is well respected within your industry.
City & Guilds qualifications are engaging and rewarding, and can lead to a whole range of fulfilling careers - including many of the UK's happiest professions.
Fast facts
| Qual. number: | 3062 |
|---|---|
| Type: | QCF |
| Level: | 2 and 3 |
| Size: | Award, Certificate |
| Purpose: | Continuing Professional Development |
| Credits: | 12 and 26 |
| 78-189 | |
| Duration: | 1-2 years |
| Fundable? | Yes. See the Learning Aims Database |
| Last registration: | 31/12/2010 |
Your questions
... if you're taking these qualifications
- What sorts of things do they cover?
Depending on the level you choose, you'll cover things like:
- recognising and preventing mental health problems in older people
- communicating with older people, their families and carers
- encouraging older people to take part in activities
- dealing with anxiety, depression or dementia in older people
- developing yourself in your role of working with older people.
- How will I learn and be assessed?
For a Promoting the Mental Health and Well-being of Older People you'll learn at a centre. You might do role-plays and question-and-answer sessions that will be like real-life situations when you're working with older people. You'll learn in a group and also organise your own study.
- Which level is right for me?
Level 2
You want to work with older people and build on any previous experience.
Level 3
You already have experience of working with older people and want to take on new responsibilities in a more senior role.
- How long do they take?
The Award or Certificate in Promoting the Mental Health and Well-being of Older People usually takes:
- 1 year full time
- 1 to 2 years part time.
This is a rough guide - each centre decides its own timescales and you can often learn at your own pace.
- What jobs could they lead to?
You could be a social services care worker, or specialise in health or housing, do advice work, or even work in the legal system to protect older people.
An Award or Certificate Promoting the Mental Health and Well-being of Older People gives you plenty of opportunities to be hands-on and to work in a team, so you'll learn skills that can help you in broader roles.
To step up to a senior role in promoting the mental well-being of older people, you might want to think about these other qualifications too:
- NVQ in Health and Social Care - develop your skills to support the care and protection of older people
- NVQ in Leadership and Management - the skills to run a team and take decisions as a senior manager.
... if you're delivering these qualifications
- How would we deliver and assess them?
For Level 2 you might want to devise role-plays to observe learners and coach them in real-life scenarios.
You'll set written assignments to test learning and the suitability of learners to work with older people.
For Level 3 you'll set written assignments for each unit.
- What resources do we need?
To create some role-play scenarios for learners you might want to set up simulated environments at your centre - for example, in an older person's home or at an advice centre, hospital or police station.
To help develop materials take a look at these inquiry reports:
- Improving services and support for older people with mental health problems
- Promoting mental health and well-being in later life.
- How can we get approval to offer them?
New to City & Guilds?
First become a centre - then you can apply for qualification approval.
Already a centre?
You can get fast-track approval if you offer:- Initial Award in Mental Health Work (3594-04)
- Certificate in Community Mental Health Care (3056)
Download the form for automatic/fast-track approval and send it to your local City & Guilds office.
Don't offer any of these? Download and complete the qualification approval form (PDF) and send it to your local City & Guilds office.
- Are there any learner eligibility requirements?
Anyone can take an Award or Certificate in Promoting the Mental Health and Well-being of Older People, although learners will usually have some experience of working with older people. You must make sure all your learners can access the resources they need to complete the qualification.
- Do these qualifications replace any others?
Yes, they replace the Initial Award in Mental Health Work (3594-04), and the Certificate in Community Mental Health Care (3056).
Related qualifications
Related careers
- Social Services Care worker
- Advice work
- Housing
- Health.
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