Work experience and placements

We use the Health Education England work experience toolkit for governance around work experience placements and there are some forms that will need to be completed to enable the placement opportunity to take place.

You will also need to get the placement team service manger to confirm that they have approved the placement can take place.

Student work experience application forms can be requested via talentforcare@merseycare.nhs.uk

We cannot guarantee that a placement can be offered. 

In some client facing areas you will need to be over the age of 18 and have an up-to date DBS Certificate prior to commencing a work placement with Mersey Care, the DBS will need to be paid for by the individual accessing the placement (this can be dealt with via resourcing once an application has been completed). 

There are placement opportunities for under 18 year olds and placement applications will be dealt with on an individual basis to identify suitable placement area.

The length of  work experience can vary from ‘tasters’ lasting just half a day through to one or two weeks or even delivered a couple of days a week over a few months.

Work experience includes observation and work shadowing, under supervision with the placement team, finding out more about the work the role involves.

A good quality work experience placement should be well organised, purposeful, have a clear role, and be reviewed.

Those taking part will need to be supervised which can provide an opportunity for existing staff wishing to develop some management and leaderships skills.

For Mersey Care, a programme can provide the first step in a 'grow our own' approach to building our workforce and feeding our talent pipeline.

Work experience provides unique insights into NHS careers: the interactions, schedules, emotions, sensations, and what a particular role is like in a real-world setting.

T Levels are new courses which follow GCSEs and are equivalent to 3 A levels. These 2 year courses, which launched September 2020,have been developed in collaboration with employers and businesses so that the content meets the needs of industry and prepares students for work, further training or study.

T Levels offer students a mixture of classroom learning and ‘on the job’ experience during an industry placement of at least 315 hours (approximately 45 days).

A simpler approach to vocational training

An industry placement is part of a T Level course - a new qualification for 16-19-year olds that have been designed by employers.

T Level students spend 80% of the course in the classroom, learning the skills that employers need. The other 20% is a meaningful industry placement, where they put these skills into action.

• You can find out more about the healthcare working environment (clinical and non-clinical)
• Give an insight into the variety of careers in the NHS to help to inform career choices
• Spend time discovering if a career in the Healthcare sector is right for them
• Help an individual develop aspirations for previously unconsidered career options

Work experience can act as a pipeline into apprenticeships, pre-registration courses or broader NHS employment.

Work experience placements must be educational, for people to observe and learn, and designed to relate to the students study and/or assist them with their choice of career.

All participants will be inducted much like our own staff, they will all receive information surrounding patient confidentiality, safeguarding, information governance and personal conduct. They will also receive a local induction into their placement area. 

Typically placements are between 1-10 days but can vary between course of study.

Work experience placements can be in clinical or non-clinical settings.

We cannot offer work experience placements to under 18s in our Mental Health or Secure Care Division.

Participants on work based placements will have a placement supervisor who will be the point of contact  throughout your time on placement.  The placement supervisor will monitor all activities that are undertaken and provide feedback, guidance and advice to the placement participant.

Participants are required to complete a reflective/personal development journal.  This will predominantly be reflective on their placement experience.