ITC First is ready to launch two new qualifications that have just been regulated by Ofqual - the ITC Level 3 Award in First Aid for Schools and Colleges and the ITC Level 3 Award in Emergency First Aid for Schools and Colleges.
Many schools and Colleges have chosen in the past to have their staff undertaking First Aid at Work training expecting it to cover their staff and the students, but FAW has not covered children. In 2022, when the Department for Education published their guidance document "First aid in schools, early years and further education", it suggested a need for "additional training in paediatric first aid". Contrary to some interpretations, the DfE have confirmed to ITC that this does not mean a PFA qualification except for the statutory requirement for Early Years settings, but an encouragement to be trained in amongst other issues, child resuscitation protocols, which were increased in age range to 18 in the 2021 Resuscitation Council update.
The new qualifications have taken the appropriate content from both FAW and PFA to produce a two day, 12 hour course appropriate to the school/college context, whether this is for on site activities inside the buildings, or outside on the playground, on the playing fields, in the sport hall, or out on educational visits. There is also the single unit, 6 hour equivalent taking the appropriate content from EFAW and EPFA. NB These new qualifications do NOT replace E/PFA, there is still a legal requirement for settings with Early Years children (0 - 5 year olds) to have E/PFA. Those looking after older children, KS1, KS2, secondary school, college do not legally need E/PFA. First Aid forSchools and Colleges is most useful for junior schools (as opposed to primary), middle schools, secondary schools and Post-16 settings.
The single unit Emergency First Aid for Schools fits nicely into a training day which will be of a benefit to those schools and colleges who want to train groups in a single day. The full two unit qualification is shorter than the initial training FAW timescales and re-qualification is not reliant on being within a month of certificate expiry.
ITC Centres can request this qualification now.
If you're not currently an ITC Centre and would like to deliver this great new qualification, get in touch with ITC today.
