Pharmacy Services

Learning Programme Content

The Learning Programme provision shall comprise of three mandatory elements:

• Qualifications,

• Essential Skills

• On/off the job training

The total minimum credit value required for the Level 2 Pathway Pharmacy Services is 43 credits.

The total minimum credit value required for the Level 3 Pathway Pharmacy Services is 150 credits.

The total minimum credit value required for the Level 4 Pathway Pharmacy Services is 120 credits.

Entry requirements

Applicants to this apprenticeship will be from different age groups, with differing

backgrounds and experience.

As a guide, applicants may enter via a range of routes including from:

• work
• work experience
• college
• training and/or experience which may include a portfolio showing what they have done

Applicants may have already achieved a range of qualifications eg:

• Essential Skills Wales
• GCSEs
• Vocational Level 2 (Btec)Science
• Welsh Baccalaureate (currently there is no credit transfer)
• Welsh Baccalaureate with Principal Learning (currently there is no credit transfer)

Personal Attributes - Employers look for health sector apprentices who are:

• Compassionate
• Honest
• Well organised
• Conscientious
• Discreet
• Respectful
• Personable

They also expect them to:

• Be able to work in a team
• Carry out their duties meticulously
• Show enthusiasm for working in the pharmacy sector
• Have sufficient literacy, numeracy and communication skills on which the apprenticeship will build
• Have a suitable level of physical fitness to perform some aspects of the job roles
• Be willing to undergo Disclosure and Barring Service checks
• Be flexible as there may be a requirement to work rotas

Individual health sector employers may have additional employment entry requirements e.g. a current driving licence would also be an advantage (and may be necessary for some roles).

Level 3 

In addition to above - Entry requirements must also meet the entry requirements set out by the General Pharmaceutical Council.

• meeting specified English language requirements 
• meeting specified numeracy requirements 
• other academic requirements or experience equivalent to national level 2 or above
• the ability to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of science suitable for entry to the course, for example, national level 2 or above (such as GCSE Science grade A*-C, grade 9 - 4 or equivalent)
• taking account of good character checks (such as Disclosure and Barring Service checks, or equivalent.)
• health checks (information about conditions that may affect fitness to practise as a trainee and how such conditions could be managed).

Level 4

In addition to above - Entry requirements must also meet the entry requirements set out by the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC).

The entry criteria for the level 4 qualification is a minimum of 4 GCSEs at grade C or above, to include English, Maths and Science.

Apprenticeship pathway learning programme(s)

Level 2: Pharmacy Services

Level 2: Pharmacy Services Qualifications

Participants must achieve one of the following combined qualifications below.

Please see Annex 1 for the relationship between the competence and knowledge units within the new combined qualification.

Essential Skills Wales (ESW)

Essential Skills Wales qualifications assessment languages are English-Welsh.

On/Off the Job training

On/Off the Job Qualification details (Minimum Credit & Hours)

The average duration for completion of this Pathway at Level 2 is 15 months

Health (Pharmacy Services). Total 43 credits.

Combined qualification 25/36 credits

Essential Skills qualifications in Communication, Application of Number and Digital Literacy 18 credits

Level 2: To satisfy the requirements of this apprenticeship pathway an apprentice will need to complete a total of 430 on and off-the-job training hours over on average between 12 and 15 months.

On/Off the Job Essential Skills details (Minimum Credit & Hours)

• 6 credits/60 GLH Level 2 Essential Skills Wales Communication
• 6 credits/60 GLH Level 2 Essential Skills Wales Application of Number
• 6 credits/60 GLH Level 2 Essential Skills Wales Digital Literacy

Level 3: Pharmacy Services

Level 3: Pharmacy Services Qualifications

Participants must achieve one of the following combined qualifications below

Please see Annex 2 for the relationship between the competence and knowledge units within the combined qualification.

Essential Skills Wales (ESW)

Essential Skills Wales qualifications assessment languages are English-Welsh.

On/Off the Job training

On/Off the Job Qualification details (Minimum Credit & Hours)

Health (Pharmacy Services). Total credits 150.

Combined qualification 132 credits

Essential Skills qualifications in Communication, Application of Number and Digital Literacy 18 credits

Level 3: To satisfy the requirements of this apprenticeship pathway an apprentice will need to complete a total of 1680 on and off-the-job training hours over 24 months

On/Off the Job Essential Skills details (Minimum Credit & Hours)

• 6 credits/60 GLH Level 2 Essential Skills Wales Communication
• 6 credits/60 GLH Level 2 Essential Skills Wales Application of Number
• 6 credits/60 GLH Level 2 Essential Skills Wales Digital Literacy

Level 4: Pharmacy Technician

Level 4: Pharmacy Technician Qualifications

Participants must achieve one of the following combined qualifications below.

Please see Annex 3 for the relationship between the competence and knowledge units within the combined qualification.

Essential Skills Wales (ESW)

Essential Skills Wales qualifications assessment languages are English-Welsh.

On/Off the Job training

Health (Pharmacy Services). Total credits 138.

Combined qualification 120 credits

Essential Skills qualifications in Communication, Application of Number and Digital Literacy 18 credit

On/Off the Job Essential Skills details (Minimum Credit & Hours)

• 6 credits/60 GLH Level 2 Essential Skills Wales Communication 

• 6 credits/60 GLH Level 2 Essential Skills Wales Application of Number 

• 6 credits/60 GLH Level 2 Essential Skills Wales Digital Literacy 

Other additional requirements

None

Job roles

The latest version of the job roles and job descriptions for this Pathway

Progression

Level 2

Progression into this Pathway

See Entry Requirements.

Progression from this Pathway

Apprentices may be able to progress to the Level 3 Level Apprenticeship in Pharmacy Services on completion of the Level 2 Foundation Apprenticeship in Pharmacy Services, to progress to a Pharmacy Technician.

Progression should not just be seen as vertical. In some instances, progressing into another role at the same level may be just as rewarding as it offers the opportunity to develop new skills and knowledge.

Learners may also progress from this pathway onto further qualifications specific to their work context. A wide range of qualifications are available for use within the health sector. These may include further qualifications or other work-related education and training to support Continuing Professional Development.

Apprentices who wish to progress into Higher Education are encouraged to complete GCSEs in English and Maths. GCSE qualifications are widely recognised across the Higher Education Sector and support progression into healthcare undergraduate programmes.

Further detailed information and advice on careers within the health sector can be found at:

NHS Wales Careers - HEIW

Level 3

Progression routes into this pathway:

See Entry Conditions. Some apprentices may have already undertaken a level 2 Pharmacy Services Apprenticeship.

Progression from the pathway:

On completion of this pathway, learners may progress onto further qualifications specific to their work context. A wide range of qualifications are available for use within the health sector. These may include further qualifications, a range of higher education qualifications or other work-related education and training to support Continuing Professional Development.

All Pharmacy Technicians have a requirement to meet the registration requirements of the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) in order to practice.

The requirements include:

• achieve an approved qualification recognised by the GPhC

• complete a minimum of two years' relevant work-based experience in the UK under the supervision, direction or guidance of a pharmacist or pharmacy technician to whom the applicant was directly accountable for not less than 14 hours per week.

   

The Level 3 framework provides quality assured training to achieve the level of competence required by the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC).

Apprentices who wish to progress into Higher Education are required to meet application requirements as set by individual institutions.

Further detailed information and advice on careers within the health sector can be found at: NHS Wales Careers - HEIW

Level 4

Completion of the apprenticeship programme enables individuals to apply to the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPHC) for registration as a Pharmacy Technician. Pharmacy Technician is a protected title and as registered health care professionals Pharmacy Technicians are experts in medicines management working in all sectors of pharmacy practice (hospital, primary care, GP practices, community pharmacy and technical services facilities). 

The role includes completing final accuracy checking of prescribed items, ward-based activity to include completing patient medication histories, medicines optimisation and clinical prioritisation, leading services such as smoking cessation and administering flu vaccinations, running clinics e.g. mental health, procurement, homecare, managing teams and leading service delivery.

Equality and diversity

It is important that apprenticeship Pathways are inclusive and can demonstrate an active approach to identifying and removing barriers to entry and progression. Pathways should advance equality of opportunity between persons who share protected characteristics and those persons who do not as identified in the Equality Act 2010.

The protected characteristics identified in the Equality Act are age, disability, gender re-assignment, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity. Marriage and civil partnership is also included although only in respect of the requirement to eliminate discrimination in employment.

Training providers and employers MUST also comply with the other duty under the Equality Act 2010 to ensure that applicants are not discriminated against in terms of entry to the industry based upon those nine protected characteristics.

There is a gender imbalance within the health sector, which is a predominantly female workforce. All jobs are open to both males and females and are advertised accordingly. Male role models are positively promoted through marketing materials, photos and case studies. However, a perception that certain job roles are for women remains and this may discourage some males from applying to work in these job roles. 

Local apprenticeship programmes may be designed by employers to encourage a higher number of male applicants into these roles and into the workforce.  For all health apprenticeships local recruitment is encouraged to reflect the local community.

It is equally important that we must increase the numbers of Welsh speakers in healthcare and improve access to services through the medium of Welsh. This will meet the Government expectation of More than Just Words and the Active Offer where people are offered and can receive their support through the medium of Welsh if they want to. 

Apprentices undertaking this pathway may also be adult learners who may have been away from education for a considerable period of time.  It is therefore important that the education/training provider delivering this pathway has support systems in place to maximise learners’ potential and to ensure that their educational needs are met by developing a personalised learning programme.  Healthcare apprentices undertaking this pathway must be made aware of all the learner support services available to them

There should be open recruitment of apprentices to the programme, which is available to all people, regardless of gender, ethnic origin, religion/belief, sexual orientation or disability who meet the stated selection criteria. Employers/providers must be able to demonstrate that there are no overt or covert discriminatory practices in selection and employment. 

All promotional, selection and training activities must comply with the following relevant legislation such as: 

The Equality Act 2010 

The Welsh Language Act 1993 

The Care Standards Act 2000 

Data Protection Act 1998 

Employment Right Act 1996 

Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 

Human Rights Act 1998 

Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 (Whistle Blowing Charter) 

Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974-1986 

Amendment Sexual Discrimination Act 1976 

Additional Learning Needs and Education Tribunal (Wales) Act 2018

It is recommended that employers/providers conduct an exit interview if the apprentice leaves the programme before completion. During the learner’s exit interview, it is recommended that information on learners leaving the programme before completion is identified and used to support the learner and develop the provision where necessary.

Employment responsibilities and rights

Employment Responsibilities and Rights (ERR) is no longer compulsory.  But it is recommended that all apprentices (especially the 16 years -18 year group) receive a company induction programme.

Responsibilities

It is the responsibility of the Training Provider and Employer to ensure that the requirements of this pathway are delivered in accordance with the Welsh Government/Medr Apprenticeships Guidance.

Further information may be obtained from: Medr

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