Industry Training Organisation, Careerforce is pleased to launch its new programme, the New Zealand Certificate in Health and Wellbeing (Level 3) Support Work – Disability.
Aimed at disability support workers and caregivers, the programme develops the skills and knowledge required to provide person centred support in the disability sector.
According to Careerforce, the new programme is more contextualised than its regular Level 3 Support Work programme, and gives the disability sector increased assurance that graduates will have the knowledge and skills that apply to their particular area of work.
‘Nothing about us without us’ has been the motto of the disabled community worldwide for some time, and highlights the importance of developing a programme based on what the disability sector actually needs. This launch follows a period of in-depth consultation with the disability sector and involved ongoing support with the design of the Level 3 programme. Stakeholders expressed the need for a support work programme that better reflects the need for staff trained to support people with disabilities, tāngata whaikaha, whānau and family and the wider community.
The Careerforce Disability Advisory Group, established with support from the New Zealand Disability Support Network (NZDSN), played a key role in this work and welcomes the new programme. The group was instrumental in helping to ensure that the disability sector is respected, represented and visible. It also helped to shape Careerforce’s understanding, inform qualification reviews, and co-create programme learning and assessment resources, and implementation reviews.
John Taylor, Executive Director at Community Connections, also welcomes the new programme. “I think this will be a great resource for staff to learn while on the job because it is so concise, direct, and accessible. I found it easy to follow, clear and engaging. Well done!” says John.
Neighbourhood Connections lead, Matt Sang says, “We are all really impressed with the layout, ease of use, and clear and engaging information. The variety of resources was also great, and we could see that it will keep learners interested as well as being informative.
“I could also imagine that this could translate to people engaging in the learning instead of getting stalled. People will want to learn and may discover a joy of learning”.
As part of the Level 3 disability programme, Careerforce developed supporting resources for two new Māori unit standards, that help trainees better engage with Mātauranga Māori. The material is less complex and contains assessment tasks that call for application and/or self-reflection. This material aligns with Careerforce’s commitment to fulfilling the special relationship between Māori and the Crown under Te Tiriti o Waitangi (Te Tiriti).
Trainees on the programme will complete their online learning and assessments through Aka Toi, Careerforce’s online learning platform, which enables the use of multimedia, interactive learning activities, and scenario-based learning as well as theory content and assessment. Trainees also have the option to download the learning resources from Aka Toi, to allow them either to be read while offline or to be printed. The learning is enhanced by guided online research to expand trainee knowledge.
The new programme is a great pathway for those who may want to progress their skills and competencies by training towards relevant Health and Wellbeing apprenticeships (Level 4), or towards a leadership and management qualification, and is expected to be completed over 12 months.
Normally costing $230, enrolments in this programme are currently fully funded by the Government’s Targeted Training and Apprenticeship fund (TTAF) which is available until December 2022.
For more information, visit the webpage, where you can download a brochure