Maternity Support Worker FdSc course

Program Overview

This two-year FdSc program prepares students to become qualified Maternity Support Workers, equipping them with clinical, care, and interpersonal skills through a combination of theory and practice learning. Graduates are eligible for shortened nursing degree courses and can progress their careers in the health and social care sector.

Program Outline

This FdSc course prepares students to work as qualified Maternity Support Workers, a key role within the multi-disciplinary maternity care workforce. The program is designed for individuals already working as healthcare support workers in a maternity service, with a minimum of 23 hours per week commitment. Students will gain practical experience through on-the-job training and will be equipped to work at band 4 level. The program emphasizes developing a wide range of specialist and transferable skills, including clinical, care, and interpersonal skills, through a combination of theory and practice learning.

Outline:

The course spans two years, with the curriculum split into two academic years:

Year 1:

• Public Health (30 credits): Introduces students to the socio-political influences shaping maternity care provision.
Covers feminist theory, psychology, sociology, and public health principles relevant to childbearing.
• Personal and Professional Practice (1) (30 credits): Introduces the concepts of being a maternity support worker, exploring the contemporary role, scope, values, and culture of maternity care.
Introduces Future Skills through engagement with Navigate.

Year 2:

• Women and Families with Additional Needs (30 credits): Focuses on deviations from normality in maternity care, linking theoretical knowledge to practice.
Students will learn how to provide high-quality holistic care for women, birthing people, their babies, and families, encompassing physical, social, and emotional needs. Covers the Maternity Support Worker's role in assessment and triage.
• Personal and Professional Practice (2) (30 credits): Focuses on acquiring knowledge and skills for promoting high-quality person-focused care.
Develops academic practice skills and supports professional growth, covering leadership and management, supporting learning and assessment in practice, research, development and innovation, and policies and frameworks that support effective care.

Assessment:

Assessment methods include a variety of approaches:

• Examinations: Year 1 includes a 25% component of examinations.
• Coursework: Coursework comprises 50% of assessment in Year 1 and 75% in Year 2.
• Practical Assessments: Practical assessments are conducted in the Clinical Skills and Simulation Suite and the workplace, accounting for 25% of Year 1 assessment and 25% of Year 2 assessment.
Practical assessments include successful completion of the practice assessment document, objective structured clinical assessments (OSCAs), and sign-off in practice by a practice assessor and an academic assessor at the end of each year.
• Pass Requirements: Students need to achieve a pass in both theory and practice to earn their final award.

Teaching:

The program utilizes a variety of teaching methods:

• Scheduled Learning and Teaching: Includes timetabled activities such as lectures, seminars, small group tutorials, placements, project work, practical sessions, workshops, conferences, and field trips.
• Guided Independent Study: Students engage in self-directed learning activities such as reading articles and books, working on projects, undertaking research, and preparing for assessments.

Careers:

Upon graduation, students are prepared to work as qualified Maternity Support Workers and can progress their careers in the health and social care sector. They may be eligible for shortened nursing degree courses.

Other:

• Future Skills: Embedded throughout the curriculum, Future Skills prepare students to become future-proof graduates by equipping them with essential skills valued by employers, such as problem-solving, digital competency, and adaptability.
• Location: Teaching may take place on multiple Kingston University campuses.
• Placement: Placements typically take place at the employer trust site where students are employed.

Fee category Amount Home (UK students) £8,100 A re-study of any modules will incur additional charges calculated by the number of credits. This decision only applies to new EU students starting after 2021/22.