For Health Care Assistants: Delivering Care in the Community

Certificate in Continuous Professional Development

Location

Centre for Health Innovation Stafford

Start dates available

  • September 2026

Develop the relevant knowledge and skills to perform the Healthcare Assistant (HCA) role in primary care and/or the community in a confident, safe and patient-focused manner.

Your role as a Health care assistant will be enhanced in your current role such as Doctors surgery, Nursing Home, and any Community setting.

The competencies are linked to the care certificate and District and General Practice Nursing Service framework 2021. 

The modules will give health care assistants an academic qualification equivalent to an A level, NVQ3, T-Level 3.

On successful completion of study, we will issue the following award: Certificate in Continuous Professional Development For Health Care Assistants: Delivering Care in the Community

Duration

This course runs over two years, with students required to complete 8 days in their first year and 7 days in second year. Modules run from September to April.

Course content

This section should detail modes of study (e.g. core learning, projects, or research), and include a breakdown of topics per year of study. Please do not just list the modules.

This course comprises of two core modules:

  • The role of the Healthcare Assistant in the community
  • Caring for people with long term conditions

The modules will provide fundamental knowledge and skills pertinent to the HCA role in primary and community care settings in a safe patient-focused way. It will provide practical ideas, hints and tips to support your practice. You will be able to demonstrate your practical skills within the workplace with your mentor/assessor.

As well as providing you with an overview of the patho-physiology and impact of the most common long term conditions identified either through Quality and Outcomes Framework or other government initiatives. It will enhance your clinical skills in monitoring long term conditions and there will be a strong emphasis on diseases prevention and promotion of self-care.

Modules

The tables provide an indicative list of the modules that make up the course for the current academic year. Each module is worth a specified number of credits. Our teaching is informed by research, and modules change periodically to reflect developments in the discipline. We aim to ensure that all modules run as scheduled. If for any reason a module cannot be run we will advise you as soon as possible and will provide guidance on selecting an appropriate alternative module where available.

Year 1 compulsory modules
The Role Of The Health Care Assistant In The Community 20 credits
Year 2 compulsory modules
Caring For People With Long Term Conditions 20 credits

Entry requirements

To undertake this course, you must be employed in a health or social care related role as you will need the support of your employer.

You will also need a mentor/assessor to support you in the workplace who must be identified before you start the course.

This needs to be a registered healthcare professional usually a nurse who holds a professional registration with a governing body such as the NMC.

All applicants must be 18 years of age at the start of the programme.

We understand that you might have experienced a challenging run up to higher education and may have not met the entry requirements as listed. If this is the case don’t worry, contact us and our team of expert advisors can guide you through the next stages of application, or help you find the perfect course for your needs.

Facilities

Stafford Library

Integrated library and computer lab with PCs containing specialist software, seating areas, group and silent study rooms.

Careers

Teaching and assessment

Learning support

In addition to the excellent support you will receive from your course teaching team, our central Academic Skills team provides group and one-to-one help to support your learning in a number of areas. These include:

  • study skills such as reading, note-taking and presentation skills
  • written English, including punctuation and grammatical accuracy
  • academic writing and how to reference
  • research skills
  • critical thinking and understanding arguments
  • revision, assessment and examination skills
  • time management

Additional support

Our Student Inclusion Services support students with additional needs such as sensory impairment, or learning difficulties such as dyslexia.

Fees

For the course starting on 21 September 2026 the tuition fees are:

Study option UK / Channel Islands
Part-time £1,045 per year of study

When studied part time, the duration of the course and the amount of fees you’ll pay each year depends on the speed at which you wish to progress through it. This is called the ‘intensity of study’. The usual study pattern on this programme enables you to complete modules totalling 60 credits in your first year of study. This would be equivalent to studying at 50 per cent course intensity.

If you follow this pattern of study you will complete the course in six years. You will pay the pro rata (equivalent) fee shown for your first year of study. This tuition fee is agreed subject to UK government policy and parliamentary regulation. If the UK government passes appropriate legislation, the fee for subsequent years of study may increase in each academic year. But this increase will not exceed the rate of inflation as measured by RPIX*. Any change in fees will apply to both new and continuing students. The University will notify students of any increase as early as possible. Further information about fee changes would be posted on the University’s website once this becomes available.

*RPIX is a measure of inflation equivalent to all the items in the Retail Price Index (RPI) excluding mortgage interest payments.

If you would like to know more about the fees listed and what this means to you then please get in touch with our Enquiries Team.

Accommodation and living costs

Accommodation and living costs are not included in our fees. 

Sources of financial support

If you receive funding from Student Finance you may be eligible to apply for additional benefits. Details can be obtained by reading our additional funding web pages, or visiting www.gov.uk.

Scholarships and additional funding

As an undergraduate student at Staffordshire, you may be eligible for additional financial support through one of our scholarships and bursaries. You can visit our funding page to find out more and check your eligibility.

Apply now to For Health Care Assistants: Delivering Care in the Community

Location Award Study option Start date
Centre for Health Innovation Stafford Certificate in Continuous Professional Development Part-time 21 September 2026 Applications are not currently open for this course.

Rules and regulations

If you are offered a place at University of Staffordshire, your offer will be subject to our rules, regulations and enrolment conditions, which may vary from time to time.

Students of University of Staffordshire enter into a contract with us and are bound by these rules and regulations, which are subject to change. For more information, please see: University Policies and Regulations.

for Career Prospects

Whatuni Student Choice Awards 2025

for Social Inclusion

The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2026

for First Generation Students

The Mail University Guide 2026

in the UK for Games Education

Rookies Games Design and Development 2023, 2025

TIGA Best Games Institution 2024, 2025

of Research is “Internationally Excellent” or “World Leading”

Research Excellence Framework 2021

of Research Impact is ‘Outstanding’ or ‘Very Considerable’

Research Excellence Framework 2021