Health & Social Care
Nescot’s Care and Health Team are at the forefront of a fast-moving industry. We believe in treating our students as responsible adult individuals and you will rapidly grow in both ability and maturity. We pride ourselves on the fact that our students are so well regarded that employers frequently send us their vacancies because they want someone who is ‘Nescot qualified’.
Our Staff
Our Tutors are not only excellent teachers and mentors but have a wide breadth of industry experience and range from social workers and nurses to nursery managers and special needs experts. The excellent quality of teaching in this department has been recognised as Grade 1 and 2 by Ofsted.
Links with other Organisations
We believe that the skills we teach you can only truly be understood in their proper context. All our students are given the opportunity to experience working in an organisation relevant to their area of study and we are extremely active in the wider community. We understand that the subjects we teach attract students with a real desire to make a difference. Our excellent links with the public sector and private care industry will show you how your skills will work in the career of your choice.
Your Education and Career
The whole department is deeply committed to helping you become the care professional you want to be. We will give you a thorough understanding of the theory of your chosen area and provide you with innovative, exciting opportunities to put that understanding into practice.
We not only give you work experience in the wider world but you can also get involved with other departments at Nescot to give you a real feel for your chosen career. From experience in the Campus Nursery, Nestots, to working with some of our students with learning disabilities, you will learn how to put classroom theory into practice to change lives.
- Name:
- Trudy Sumner
- Course:
- Health & Social Care Level 3 Extended Diploma
What made you decide to study Health and Social Care at Nescot College?
I’d previously done A-Levels in English, Law, Psychology and Sociology but did not find them very useful. I drove past the college and wondered if it had anything for me. After researching the courses on the website I was drawn to the hands on experience offered by Health and Social so I applied.
Has the college lived up to your expectations?
It’s much better than I hoped! I was initially nervous: being that bit older; not knowing anyone; whether the course would be right for me but all of those things have actually been an advantage. There were lots of others my age, the college is a very friendly place, it’s been an opportunity to meet new people and the course has been everything I wanted. The tutors here deserve a special mention. They are always there to help or explain and you build a very good relationship with them. The office is always open for help or a chat. Other things worth a mention are the LRC – staff are really helpful and the books and resources are great – and the sports facilities.
And your course?
Great, I didn’t realise how in depth the course would be and how many units we cover. I had never thought of some of the careers open to me but everything we learn at Nescot is industry focused so you come out with a clear idea of career paths or how you can take your education further. I’ve learned about things like therapy in a social care setting, police family liaison work and midwifery. Even though they are not what I want to do, they’re agencies I’ll most likely work with so it’s good to understand their roles.
I also like the placements we do here. I worked in a primary school with reception children aged four to five. It’s basically a teaching assistant role and although it was exhausting, I really enjoyed it!
What advice would you have for someone interested in doing your course?
It’s a lot of work but incredibly useful in clarifying what you want to do and how to get there. You will need to be disciplined to keep up with the hefty coursework load but if you get your head down and keep on top of it, you will get real satisfaction from knowing you’re heading for a clear goal – the career you want. This course has opened so many doors for me. I’d recommend it to anyone interested in working in this field.
What are your plans for the future?
I’m going to Kingston University to study social work and I’m hoping to train as a family social worker. I know it’s a challenging area but I’m determined to make a difference.
