ProQual Level 3 Award in Healthcare and Social Care Support Skills

The ProQual Level 3 Award in Healthcare and Social Care Support Skills is an officially recognised UK qualification positioned at Level 3 on the Regulated Qualifications Framework (RQF) and regulated by Ofqual. This intermediate-level credential supports individuals advancing from entry-level positions into skilled supervisory and specialist roles within healthcare and social care environments across UK hospitals, nursing homes, residential care facilities, and community health services.

The programme delivers advanced workplace competencies aligned with Care Quality Commission (CQC) regulatory standards. Core content addresses enhanced person-centred care delivery, complex safeguarding responsibilities, leadership in health and safety management, clinical observations and recording, and specialist support for activities of daily living. Training encompasses medication support coordination, care planning development, team supervision, clinical procedure assistance, and quality assurance monitoring within care settings.

Upon completion, learners receive formal certification validating Level 3 occupational competence for senior support worker, lead care assistant, and specialist healthcare roles. The qualification establishes essential foundations for progression to Level 4/5 management credentials and advanced clinical specialisms within UK regulated health and social care provision.

Why Choose ProQual Level 3 Award in Healthcare and Social Care Support Skills?

The ProQual Level 3 Award in Healthcare and Social Care Support Skills is a UK-recognised qualification that builds advanced practical skills for working in care settings. It focuses on safe, effective support and strengthens your knowledge of healthcare practices. The course boosts confidence, prepares you for real job responsibilities, and is ideal for those looking to progress in the healthcare and social care sector.

ProQual Level 3 Syllabus Highlights

Sr#	Unit Title	Credit Value	GLH
1	Work with babies and young children to promote their development and learning	6	45
2	Engage in personal development in health, social care or children’s and young people’s settings	3	10
3	Support individuals with multiple conditions and/or disabilities	4	31
4	Support individuals who are bereaved	4	30
5	Prepare for and carry out extended feeding techniques	4	27
6	Provide support to continue recommended therapie	3	20
7	Insert and secure nasogastric tubes	4	30
8	Develop positive relationships with children and young people	4	30
9	Provide advice and information to enable parents to promote the health and well-being of their newborn babies	3	22
10	Facilitate and monitor housing and accommodation services to support individuals with mental health needs	5	32
11	Collaborate in the assessment of environmental and social support in the community	4	23
12	Influencing Others at Work	1	6
13	Care for the physical and nutritional needs of babies and young children	6	45
14	Support families who have a child with a disability	3	23
15	Support individuals to manage their finances	3	20
16	Obtain venous blood samples	3	24
17	Implement therapeutic group activities	3	25
18	Collate and communicate health information to individuals	3	20
19	Provide information and advice to individuals on eating to maintain optimum nutritional status	5	38
20	Assist in the implementation of programmes to increase mobility, movement and functional independence	4	28
21	Receive and handle clinical specimens within the sterile field	4	30
22	Prepare anaesthetic environment and provide support for pre and post-operative anaesthesia and recovery	5	38
23	Make recommendations for the use of physical resources in a health setting	5	33
24	Maintaining quality standards in the health sector	2	13
25	Understand Models of Disability	3	26
26	Support individuals to access and use services and facilities	4	25
27	Promote and implement health and safety in health and social care	6	43
28	Support young people with a disability to make the transition into adulthood	5	40
29	Understand mental well-being and mental health promotion	3	14
30	Carry out vision screening	4	27
31	Assist professionals to support individuals from diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds to access speech and language therapy services	5	35
32	Implement hydrotherapy programmes for individuals and groups	5	35
33	Deliver exercise sessions to improve individuals’ health and wellbeing	5	32
34	Provide support to the surgical team when preparing individuals for operative and invasive procedures	4	32
35	Facilitate person centred assessment, planning, implementation and review	6	45
36	Work in partnership with families to support individuals	4	27
37	Support individuals to develop and run support groups	3	24
38	Monitor own work practice in health, social care or children’s and young people’s settings	3	20
39	Perform first line calibration on clinical equipment to ensure it is fit for use	3	20
40	Monitor and review individuals progress in relation to maintaining optimum nutritional status	3	26
41	Give presentations to groups	4	26
42	Support individuals in undertaking their chosen activities	4	24
43	Control the use of physical resources in a health setting	3	25
44	Support children and young people experiencing transitions	3	28
45	Promote communication in health, social care or children’s and young people’s settings	3	10
46	Contribute to the prevention of aggressive and abusive behaviour of people	4	26
47	Service improvement in the health sector	3	20
48	Understand the process and experience of dementia	3	22
49	Understand Physical Disability	3	22
50	Support individuals with a learning disability to access healthcare	3	25
51	Undertake urethral catheterisation processes	4	28
52	Promote good practice in handling information in health and social care settings	2	16
53	Understand mental health problems	3	14
54	Perform routine Electrocardiograph (ECG) Procedures	4	30
55	Undertake treatments and dressings of lesions and wounds	4	25
56	Adapt and fit healthcare equipment, medical devices, assistive technology, or products, to meet individuals’ needs	6	37
57	Administer oral nutritional products to individuals	5	35
58	Promote effective communication with individuals with sensory loss	4	30
59	Work with other professionals and agencies to support individuals with physical disability	3	23
60	Support individuals to access housing and accommodation services	4	24
61	Identify information requirements in a health context	4	30
62	Prepare and reproduce permanent radiographic images	4	23
63	Develop and prepare speech and language therapy resources for alternative and augmentative communication (AAC) use	4	25
64	Carry out wound drainage care	4	32
65	Prepare and provide surgical instrumentation and supplementary items for the surgical team	6	43
66	Care for a newly born baby when the mother is unable to do so	4	32
67	Understand Child and Young Person Development	4	30
68	Provide support to maintain and develop skills for everyday life	4	28
69	Facilitate learning and development activities to meet individual needs and preferences	5	35
70	Enable individuals with behavioural difficulties to develop strategies to change their behaviour	8	41
71	Reprocess endoscopy equipment	4	30
72	Support individuals with cognition and learning difficulties	5	34
73	Assist in testing individuals’ abilities prior to planning physical activities	5	38
74	Support individuals to manage dysphagia	5	35
75	Provide advice on foot care for individuals with diabetes	3	23
76	Transport, transfer and position individuals and equipment within the perioperative environment	5	32
77	Understand Sensory Loss	3	21
78	Support families who are affected by Acquired Brain Injury	3	30
79	Support individuals during a period of change	4	29
80	Perform intravenous cannulation	4	34
81	Care for individuals with urethral catheters	4	30
82	Conduct routine maintenance on clinical equipment	4	30
83	Assist and support individuals to use alternative and augmentative communication systems (AAC)	5	35
84	Measure and record individuals’ body fluid balance in a perioperative environment	4	23
85	Support parents/carers to interact with and care for their newborn baby	4	30
86	Deliver training through demonstration and instruction	3	21
87	Principles for implementing duty of care in health social care or children’s and young people’s settings	1	5
88	Promote Child and Young Person Development	3	25
89	Develop and sustain effective working relationships with staff in other agencies	4	24
90	Undertake physiological measurements	3	23
91	Undertake stoma care	4	30
92	Assure the effective functioning of radiographic image processing equipment	4	25
93	Operate equipment for intraoperative cell salvage blood collection	5	40
94	Advise and inform individuals on managing their condition	5	31
95	Assist others to monitor individuals’ progress in managing dysphagia	5	38
96	Support carers to meet the care needs of individuals	5	30
97	Maintain pharmaceutical stock	3	4
98	Anatomy and Physiology for Maternity Support Workers	2	20
99	Receive prescriptions from individuals	3	15
100	Understand how to support individuals with autistic spectrum conditions	3	28
101	Support Individuals with Specific Communication Needs	5	35
102	Obtain and test capillary blood samples	4	30
103	Support individuals at the end of life	7	53
104	Contribute to effective multidisciplinary team working	3	20
105	Analyse and present health related data and information	4	30
106	Remove wound drains	4	27
107	Develop activities and materials to enable individuals to reach specific communication goals	5	38
108	Operate equipment for intraoperative cell salvage blood processing and complete intraoperative cell salvage blood process	5	39
109	Support parents/carers and those in a parental role to care for babies during their first year	5	36
110	Obtain a client history	3	22
111	Manage the availability of physical resources to meet service delivery needs in a health setting	5	33
112	Administer medication to individuals, and monitor the effects	5	30
113	Undertake an in-process accuracy check of assembled prescribed items prior to the final accuracy check	4	11
114	Promote equality and inclusion in health, social care or children’s and young people’s settings	2	8
115	Understand the impact of Acquired Brain Injury on individuals	3	28
116	Support individuals to live at home	4	25
117	Promote person centred approaches in health and social care	6	41
118	interact with and support individuals using telecommunications	5	36
119	Undertake tissue viability risk assessments	3	26
120	Manufacture equipment or medical devices for individuals within healthcare	4	30
121	Provide support for individuals with communication and interaction difficulties	5	39
122	Monitor individuals’ progress in relation to managing their body weight and nutrition	3	26
123	Assist in implementing treatment programmes for individuals with severely reduced movement/mobility	5	29
124	Assist in the delivery of perioperative care and support to individuals	4	31
125	Examine the feet of individuals with diabetes	4	32
126	Communicate with individuals about promoting their health and wellbeing while working as a Health Trainer	3	15
127	Understand How to Safeguard the Wellbeing of Children and Young People	3	25
128	Support Children and Young People's Health and Safety	2	15
129	Develop Positive Relationship with Children, Young People and Others Involved in Their Care	1	8
130	Working Together for the Benefit of Children and Young People	2	15
131	Understand How to Support Positive Outcomes for Children and Young People	3	25
132	Assessment and planning with children and young people	5	35
133	Promote the wellbeing and resilience of children and young people	4	30
134	Professional practice in children and young people’s social care	4	30
135	Support individuals to prepare for and settle in to new home environments	3	23
136	Promote positive behaviour	6	44
137	Support use of medication in social care settings	5	40
138	Provide information and advice to children and young people	3	22
139	Support young people to move towards independence and manage their lives	3	20
140	Work with children and young people in a residential care setting	5	35
141	Support positive practice with children and young people with speech, language and communication needs	4	28
142	Support children or young people in their own home	4	30
143	Support positive attachments for children and young people	7	55
144	Support individuals with autistic spectrum conditions	4	33
145	Prepare, load and operate decontamination equipment	3	23
146	Carry out sterilisation and product release of reuseable medical devices	3	24
147	Understand how to monitor the decontamination process	2	19
148	Monitor and solve customer service problems	1	8
149	Plan, allocate and monitor work of a team	6	40
150	Understand Stroke Care Management	5	25
151	Conduct hearing assessments	4	36
152	Conduct External Ear Examinations	5	38
153	Carry out intravenous infusion	4	28
154	Carry out blood collection from fixed or central lines	4	30
155	Diabetes Awareness	4	30
156	Introduction to the role and responsibilities of a Health Trainer	6	46
157	Establishing and developing relationships with communities while working as a Health Trainer	4	20
158	Enable individuals to change their behaviour to improve their health and wellbeing while working as a Health Trainer	3	10
159	Clinical Imaging Support Worker: Anatomy and Terminology	5	25
160	Clinical Imaging Support Worker: Fundamentals of Care	3	24
161	Clinical Imaging Support Worker: Radiation Protection and Awareness	6	48
162	The Use of Contrast Media in Clinical Imaging	3	24
163	Speech and Language Support for 11-16s: From Theory into Practice	2	15
164	Speech and Language Support for 5-11s: From Theory into Practice	9	63
165	Communication Support for 0-25s with Severe and Complex Needs: From Theory into Practice	9	63
166	Communication and relationships to promote thewellbeing and mental health of older people	9	63

Entry Requirements

• Minimum Age: 16+years.
• Educational Background : Level 2 care qualification OR relevant experience.
• Work Experience: 6+ months healthcare/social care employment required.
• Prior Knowledge: Level 2 care qualification or 6 months relevant experience required.

Who Is It For?

The ProQual Level 3 Award in Healthcare and Social Care Support Skills is intended for learners who want to build higher-level skills and expand their knowledge in the care field. It is suitable for individuals who already understand the basics of care work and are ready to advance in their professional journey.

Ideal Candidates Include:

• People working in healthcare or social care roles
• Care assistants aiming for career progression
• Learners who have completed a Level 2 qualification in care
• Support staff wanting to improve their practical abilities
• Individuals seeking better job opportunities in the care sector
• Those preparing for more senior responsibilities in care settings

In conclusion, this course is ideal for anyone looking to develop stronger skills, take on greater responsibilities, and move forward in their healthcare and social care career path.

Career Benefits & Progression

The ProQual Level 3 Award in Healthcare and Social Care Support Skills unlocks senior roles and leadership opportunities in UK healthcare, boosting earning potential and career growth.

Key Benefits:

• Level 3 Ofqual qualification recognised for senior care positions
• Salary increase: £13-15/hour as Senior Care Assistant (vs £11-12 for Level 2)
• Leadership development: Supervise teams, care planning, quality assurance
• Quick progression: Fast-track to Level 4/5 management diplomas

Progression Pathways:

• Senior Care Assistant → Team Leader/Shift Coordinator
• Level 4 Care Leadership → Deputy Manager (£15-18/hour)
• Specialist roles: Dementia Lead, Medication Manager
• NHS Band 3/4 → Senior Healthcare Assistant
• HSC Level 5 → Registered Care Manager

This qualification creates a clear pathway from support worker to management in healthcare and social care.