Paediatric First Aid Courses - Advice for those who work with young children

There seems to be some confusion at the moment regarding the first aid training requirements for those working in the pre-school childcare sector. At Peak Skills we have looked into this very thoroughly and spoken with Ofsted and the Local Authority. Here are the conclusions from these conversations, which will hopefully make things clearer!

All childminders must take a course run by a Local Authority approved training company and which meets the below specifications (excerpt from awarding body requirements) –

This qualification is comprised of 2 single credit units with 10 guided learning hours per unit. Minimum contact teaching hours apply to this qualification - In order to comply with Ofsted requirements, the Level 2 Award in Paediatric First Aid (QCF) must be delivered over a minimum of 12 hours. Please note- this is 12 contact hours, not part on-line or home study.

Ofsted require the same level of training for the nannies they approve for the voluntary register. Nannies who do not wish to be on the voluntary Ofsted register may choose to complete just day 1 of the 2 day course.

Paediatric first aid now sits on the national qualifications framework alongside all other training courses so that students can link all the training they do, wherever they do it, together. As well as this meaning they can get the most use out of their training, it also ensures the students get a course which is regulated correctly by a company who are audited and have rigorous internal and external quality assurances, trained by qualified trainers who are regularly inspected and can be sure the information they are receiving is the most up to date.

Don't get caught out....

Since the cessation of HSE governance of first aid training providers (which happened on the 1st October 2013) the onus is now on the client to ensure their training provider is suitable. There are many training companies around who choose not to deliver their courses with the backing of an awarding body.They can then produce their own certificates and do not register their students' courses on the framework. They may be cheaper than regulated companies, but can not give the same assurances as those companies who are regulated, such as Peak Skills.