Bradford College lights up blue for NHS 75 Birthday
Today we celebrate 75 years of the National Health Service (NHS). The David Hockney Building will be illuminated in blue later on tonight, to pay tribute to our amazing NHS.
Here, we share details and experiences of students and courses from every corner of our health provision who have studied with us, built their confidence and learnt new skills before moving into successful and rewarding NHS careers.
It’s also a chance for us to talk about the work that goes on behind the scenes, to ensure that we play our part in preparing a fit for purpose NHS workforce of the future. Our provision is delivered by experienced healthcare professionals, some of whom trained at Bradford College at the start of their career, and have now returned to share their experience, knowledge and skills with our students.
Over 15 of our courses directly support NHS careers. They are delivered full-time, part-time or distance learning, delivered at entry level through to postgraduate, preparing our students for careers in adult, child and mental health nursing, pharmacy, dental, radiology, Ophthalmics, midwifery and senior frontline care workers.
Over 600 students a year enrol onto these courses, from Entry Level through to University level.
We work locally and nationally with NHS Trusts. Local trusts include Bradford District Teaching Hospitals, Pinderfields Hospital and Airedale NHS Trust.
Bradford Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust joint award winners
Our Apprenticeships team won the ‘Care Services Apprenticeship Provider of the Year’ award at the West Yorkshire Apprenticeship Awards recently for our successful and fully integrated partnership with Bradford Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust to deliver a steady stream of frontline care workers to the Trust.
This “one team” approach has enabled 59 Apprenticeships in the past 12 months, with a further 92 underway, contributing to an overall figure of 151 provided so far across adult, maternity and pediatric service.
The College and Trust team have now been approached by other local NHS services to advise on how the delivery methods could be shared as best practice across the NHS.
During COVID-19, the College was a pillar of strength, the support they provided for all learners and staff within the apprenticeship team was exemplary. They went above and beyond anything that I have ever experienced – using Teams, setting up meetings and phonecalls etc.
Marie Malcolm-Richards, Education Lead – Apprenticeships & Widening Participation, Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Bradford Royal Infirmary (BRI)
BRI is Bradford College’s official T-level Industry Placement Partner, ensuring that T-Level in Healthcare Science students can gain 315 work placement hours over the 2 years, to ensure they complete their qualification, which launches in September. The BRI team allowed our trainers and assessors to attend the staff induction to ensure the students are prepared as much as possible for success within the hospital.
BRI also supports Bradford College’s Project Search programme for young adults, aged 18—25, with a learning disability, or autistic spectrum condition that helps support young people to gain meaningful work experience in a real-life work setting.
Joe Aldridge, is currently doing a Project SEARCH internship at the BRI. Amanda Clayman “Joe joined us in September and has been working in receipt and distribution. Joe has now managed to secure paid employment in theatres 5 and 6, working as part of the team and has received an award from the theatre staff to acknowledge his positive attitude and general demeanour”.
“My work placement was at the ENT outpatient department at the BRI. The staff were caring and made me feel like part of the team. I was honoured to be there.
It’s important that other students take this opportunity to see the inside of how it could be within a healthcare service. I would 100% recommend undertaking a placement at BRI.”
Iqra Mahmood, Level 2 Health and Social Care Student
Where our health courses can take you
Our Access to Higher Education courses are ideal if you’re unsure about your career options or wish to change careers and explore career options in the NHS.
Marcia Dewar, Team Leader for Access to Higher Education tells us “Our students are mostly adults. When we ask them what their motivations are, they tell us that they had a great NHS experience and now want to give something back. The NHS made an impact on them – and now they want to be part of that.”
Allied Health Professions
Last week, 80 Fast Track to T Level Health students took part in a new virtual ‘Aspiring Allies’ project which is being piloted at Bradford College, to learn more about the allied health professions that support patients in the NHS. Unlike traditional career schemes that focus on the roles of doctors and nurses, Aspiring Allies explores the 14 allied health profession careers available in the NHS, including osteopaths, physiotherapists, dieticians, occupational therapists, and speech and language therapists.
The online initiative is designed to help the Trust accommodate the demand for student work experience opportunities. Students take part in a six module supported programme to learn the practical skills needed to progress into one of the allied health professions.
Dentistry
Northern Dental Education Centre (NORDEC) is located in the Advanced Technology Centre and is a state-of-the-art facility to train apprentice dental nurses and deliver CPD courses to dental professionals from all over the country.
Our dental courses support young people to progress into dental careers. Preparing to work in a dental setting provides basic skills that allow learners to progress into Dental Assistant roles in both the private and public sector. The centre has helped train more than 1,000 staff from the dental industry on short courses; and over 300 dental-related apprenticeships.
Nursing and Midwifery
If you’re over 19 and looking for a career in adult, child or mental health nursing – the Access to Nursing and Midwifery is ideal as the course was designed to include science as part of the curriculum, so that students gain a broad understanding of health inequalities, health policy and biology, providing them with many career and University options ahead.
Our Access to HE Science courses involve both a double or triple science route and Bradford College is currently the only College that provides this, again, designed to open up more career pathways in the NHS as students develop a broad knowledge and understanding.
Our Fast Track to T-Level in Health (Adult Nursing), T-Level in Health (Supporting the Adult Nursing Team) and T-Level in Healthcare Science all launch in September and benefit from brand new teaching facilities which will include a simulation suite for 6 bed ward, together with a mental health treatment area, pressure sore models, a medication trolley and a community area.
These courses provide students with routes and work experience into adult, child and mental health nursing careers.
Ophthalmics
Our range of Ophthalmic courses were launched at Bradford College 75 years ago. The courses are delivered by a teaching team with almost 80 years of combined academic experience and who are all qualified Dispensing Opticians.
There are multiple rewarding career paths through the Diploma, Blended Diploma and the Degree.
Organ donation
It’s not just about the teaching teams and opportunities from courses that we’re celebrating. Its also about the individuals that work within the College that champion the NHS for different reasons –
Individuals like Karen Piotr who works in our Health Sciences, Meditech & Technology department who made the 9,000 mile journey to Perth, Australia for the exciting opportunity of being Team GB captain of a team of 123 transplant athletes, as well as 100 supporters who travelled to cheer the team on.
Every athlete competing has survived a heart, lung, kidney, pancreas, liver, small bowel or bone marrow transplant and resides in the UK, ranging between 12 and 73 years old. This inspiring lady has played a huge part in Bradford College’s mission to increase organ donation awareness and captaining GB is just her latest proud moment, after opening the 2022 British Games. These incredible achievements have come following the passing of Karen’s late husband Mark in 2017, whose organs were donated to eight different individuals.
Pharmacy
We have eight courses in this area. Adults wishing to study the BTEC Diploma in Clinical Pharmacy Services and Therapeutics at Level 4 can take advantage of flexible funding options, supported by both employers and NHS organisations.
Over 100 student places are taken each year on the course by pharmacy professionals primarily in NHS pharmacy roles. Students receive live online lessons and inductions and will join a community of practice which brings NHS teams together.
Our Apprenticeships for Pharmacy Services Assistant and Pre-Registration Trainee Pharmacy Technicians provides pharmacy technicians on a national level and our BTEC Diploma in Principles and Practice for Pharmacy Technicians is delivered using live online lessons all delivered by qualified teachers, pharmacists or pharmacy technicians.
Completing the course had a huge impact on my clinical practice. I am now able to use what I have learned in the course and apply it to my day-to-day practice. The course has also given me more confidence and ability in my role. Since completing the course, I find that I am more able to deal with questions and queries that I would previously have to refer somewhere else.
Jordan Reynolds, Lead Pharmacy Technician – EPMA & Pharmacy IT Systems, Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust
Unique CPD pharmacy opportunities
Bradford College is one of a handful of colleges that offers AVA L3 Certificate in Assessing Vocational Achievement, providing you with the qualifications needed to be an NVQ assessor. The IQA Level 4 Internal Verifier qualification providing you with the knowledge and skills to internally verify courses.
Our Pharmacy Accredited Checking Training course ensures you are confident and clear in checking the accuracy of prescriptions, communicating potential errors and issues in dispensing and complying with current legislation and good practice in pharmacy. Students tell us
I’ve gained a lot of knowledge whilst doing this course and felt myself gaining more confidence and making less errors in my everyday work. I feel I have become an even more valuable member of the team in my workplace’.
Former ACT Student
Next steps
The College hopes to developing and hosting an NHS specific careers event in 2024.
If you’re looking to start or change your career in this sector, you can explore our full range of courses below starting in September.
If you’d like to discuss your options, you can call into the College any time during office hours, or contact admissions using the form below, to talk to the team about your options.
