T Level health placements in a mental health setting

Overview

Devon Partnership NHS Trust provides high-quality specialist services in mental health, learning disabilities and neurodiversity. The trust is committed to boosting the number of young people in its workforce and worked with Exeter College and Petroc College to develop T Level industry placements that gave young people the opportunity to better understand and contribute to the trust’s services and potentially become part of their future workforce.

Key benefits and outcomes

• The trust’s offer for health T Level industry placements has successfully attracted young talent into the healthcare workforce. 
• Engaging senior leadership, tailoring placements to student interests and providing mentorship has enabled teams to create a supportive and enriching environment for T Level students.
• This approach is already inspiring young people to pursue careers in healthcare and students have gone on to apprenticeships. There are also positive outcomes for existing staff who now have the opportunity to develop their mentoring skills.

What the organisation faced

The trust was keen to boost the number of young people in its workforce and realised that using health T Level students could help achieve this. Working with Exeter College and Petroc College, the trust developed T Level industry placements to give young people the opportunity to better understand and contribute to the trust’s services.

What the organisation did

Senior-level engagement was crucial to the T Level placement opportunities. Placement options that would maximise the learning potential were identified and agreed with the deputy director of nursing. Then, to support the onboarding of T Level students who are typically under-18 years old, a risk mitigation proposal was produced for approval by the senior management team. 

The trust now offers a variety of placement opportunities, with T Level students gaining hands-on experience caring for individuals with learning difficulties, mental health needs and challenging behaviours in liaison psychiatry services, older persons inpatient departments and vocational rehabilitation services.

All the students who have a placement have shown interest in working in mental health, learning disabilities and/or neurodiversity care. Placements are available in a variety of health settings, giving each student a comprehensive view of the service and a better understanding of different aspects of mental health conditions and care. 

The placement model is tailored to students’ preferences. Some students have one placement for the full 315 hours during their studies with the mental health trust, whereas others are placed in a combination of settings, with time spent in the community teams and older persons inpatient departments. Whichever option they choose, they gain first-hand experience identifying issues and helping individuals with depression, anxiety, delirium and dementia. 

Under supervision, T Level students support people with their daily living activities and deliver patient-centred care, promoting independence and wellbeing, and offering support and comfort, ultimately improving each patient’s quality of life. By participating in care, students develop their communication skills, including empathy and kindness, and learn the importance of active listening in helping to reduce confusion and anxiety, especially for those with dementia.

T Level students apply their course learning to take physiological measurements. They already know about information governance, record-keeping, health and safety, infection control, patient-centred care and safeguarding and can apply them to real-world situations. The placements introduce them to the high standards of professional behaviour and working in a team expected in healthcare settings, helping them in their future career choices.

Results and benefits

The trust has a pathway that means students who have completed their T Level programme can apply for early career roles or an apprenticeship, such as the registered nurse degree apprenticeship. One T Level student has already started a level 6 registered nurse degree apprenticeship in learning disabilities with the team.

The trust’s staff also benefit from nurturing future healthcare professionals because it gives them the opportunity to develop their own skills and enrich their roles.

“Through mentoring T Level students, our support workforce has a fantastic opportunity to develop leadership skills. It is a win–win situation where students gain practical skills and insights, while staff enhance their leadership and teaching abilities.” 

Pauline Champion, Early Career and Volunteer Co-ordinator

The trust is looking to develop further rotational placements to give students an opportunity to engage with the wide variety of roles on offer in a mental health, learning disability and neurodiversity setting.

Takeaway tips

• Include T Levels in workforce planning by creating career pathways from T Levels into employment. 
• Tailor industry placements to students’ interests and encourage them to explore previously unconsidered areas to enhance their learning experience.
• Age is not a barrier to hosting T Level industry placements. 
• Applying their classroom learning to real-world situations means that, under supervision, T Level students contribute to patient care.

For more information about this case study, contact Jo Horne, apprenticeship development and early careers manager.