Foundation Health and Social Care, and Childcare
Foundation Health and Social Care, and Childcare is a two-year, two-unit Work-Related Foundation Qualification for learners aged 14 to 16 working at Entry Level or Level 1. Every learner takes Unit 1 on the sectors, communication, safeguarding and wellbeing, then either Unit 2 Adult Health and Social Care or Unit 3 Childcare. All assessment is a teacher-set portfolio, marked in the centre and moderated by WJEC. The only digital task named in the assessment criteria is in Unit 2, where learners use a digital tool to support an adult's choice and participation. Elsewhere the digital work comes from the example tasks: web quests, presentations, leaflets, posters, blogs and flow charts, plus photographing, filming and uploading all evidence, since every portfolio must be submitted digitally.
- Awarding body
- WJEC
- Level
- Entry Level and Level 1
- First taught
- September 2027
- Amount of digital work
- Low
- Specification
- Open the specification
How this qualification is assessed
- Unit 1: Introduction to the Health and Social Care and Childcare sector, and Basic Safeguarding: Compulsory, taught first. Centre marked non-examination assessment, a portfolio of evidence from teacher-set tasks, maximum assessment time 12 hours (typically 9 to 12 hours), 52 of the 120 qualification points, assessed in centre and moderated by WJEC. 48 guided learning hours, first moderated summer 2028.
- Unit 2: Adult Health and Social Care: Optional, taken instead of Unit 3. Centre marked non-examination assessment, a portfolio of evidence from teacher-set tasks, maximum assessment time 18 hours (typically 14 to 18 hours), 68 of the 120 qualification points, assessed in centre and moderated by WJEC. 72 guided learning hours, first moderated summer 2029.
- Unit 3: Childcare: Optional, taken instead of Unit 2. Centre marked non-examination assessment, a portfolio of evidence from teacher-set tasks, maximum assessment time 18 hours (typically 14 to 18 hours), 68 of the 120 qualification points, assessed in centre and moderated by WJEC. 72 guided learning hours, first moderated summer 2029.
Skills that use Communication
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Using a digital tool to support an adult's choice and independence
In Unit 2, LO2.3, active participation includes digital inclusivity, and learners use a digital tool to help an adult take part in a daily activity, such as choosing meals or music or using a communication app. At Level 1 they demonstrate how the tool increases the adult's independence, choice or control.
DCF: Health and well-being, Communication, Evaluating and improving digital content
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils use a picture symbol board app on a tablet to make a simple choice for a partner, such as a drink or a song, and say how it helped them choose.
- Year 8
- Pupils compare two tools for helping someone order lunch, a picture menu in PowerPoint and a voice assistant, and list what each does well for a person with limited speech.
- Year 9
- Pupils set up a simple choice board on a tablet for a care scenario, such as an older adult choosing a daily activity, and explain how it gives the person more independence, choice and control.
Show the specification wording and the DCF statements
Where it is in the specification: Unit 2, LO2.3 content, page 27; assessment criterion 2.3.2, page 31; example tasks, pages 34 and 35; resources, page 25
“use a digital tool to support an adult's choice, communication, or participation in an activity.”
Progression step 3
I can identify the wider positive and negative influences of technology, e.g. on my life, on society, on the environment.
I can show an understanding of the advantages and disadvantages of different forms of communication and when it is appropriate to use each, e.g. explain when video conferencing may be more appropriate than e-mail, and vice versa; explain the pros and cons of using instant messaging in social contexts; talk about purpose and audience.
Progression step 4
I can select and use different online communication tools for specific purposes with higher levels of competence, e.g. set up and manage an address book, organise contacts, use advanced features of e-mail provider (signature, auto reply, read receipt, widgets).
I can justify the reasons for choices and explain the advantages and disadvantages of the different digital outputs I create.
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Hearing from professionals online
Each unit suggests learners hear directly from and interact with health, social care and childcare professionals, either in person or online. This is a world of work learning experience and is not directly assessed.
DCF: Communication, Online behaviour and online bullying
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils watch a recorded video of a nurse describing her day and write two questions they would ask her.
- Year 8
- Pupils take part in a class Teams call with a local childminder, using the chat to post questions politely.
- Year 9
- Pupils plan and run a short online interview with a care worker, agreeing roles, keeping to video call etiquette and writing up three things they learned.
Show the specification wording and the DCF statements
Where it is in the specification: Unit 1, page 23; Unit 2, page 37; Unit 3, page 50
“either in person or online, to appreciate their experiences of working within the sectors”
Progression step 3
I can show an understanding of the advantages and disadvantages of different forms of communication and when it is appropriate to use each, e.g. explain when video conferencing may be more appropriate than e-mail, and vice versa; explain the pros and cons of using instant messaging in social contexts; talk about purpose and audience.
Progression step 4
I can select and use different online communication tools for specific purposes with higher levels of competence, e.g. set up and manage an address book, organise contacts, use advanced features of e-mail provider (signature, auto reply, read receipt, widgets).
I can act appropriately online, keeping myself safe and behaving in a responsible manner.
Good to know
- All portfolio evidence is uploaded: "All evidence must be submitted digitally." Paper and practical work "should be scanned, photographed or filmed so that a clear digital version can be submitted" (Section 3.3, page 52).
- Evidence can be recorded rather than written, including "photographic evidence" and "video/audio recordings" of learners performing a task or giving a presentation (Section 3.3, page 52).
- The example tasks are optional: "These tasks are not mandatory." (Section 2.1, page 9). Centres can design their own, so most digital work depends on the tasks the centre chooses.
- Unit 2 needs a device: centres should provide "access to a digital device (tablet, laptop or similar) where tasks involve digital participation." (Unit 2, page 25). Unit 1 has "no specific requirements for assessment" (page 12) and no device is listed for Unit 3 (page 39).
- Entry 1 learners may use technology to take part: support can include "use of symbols, or assistive technology" (Section 3.4, page 53).
- Learners must be supervised while completing assessment activities, and "Both learners and teachers must sign declarations confirming the authenticity of submitted work." (Section 3.5, page 53). The specification does not mention artificial intelligence.
- Appendix A (page 60) maps Digital Competence Producing to "All sections" of all three units, and maps Citizenship, Interacting and Collaborating, and Data and Computational Thinking to none.
Links with other qualifications
The specification names GCSE Health and Social Care, and Childcare as the next step, and the two share the same structure: a sector and wellbeing unit, then Adult Health and Social Care or Childcare. There is no WJEC VCSE in this subject. The GCSE steps the digital work up from short supported tasks to two longer NEA units that must be word-processed or scanned and uploaded, a childcare investigation that needs referenced online research, and an examination that asks learners to interpret health statistics and judge health promotion campaigns. The Foundation web quests, presentations, leaflets and digital submission are a sound base for that. Communication, safeguarding and healthy eating link with Health and Wellbeing lessons, and the Eatwell Guide work with Food and Nutrition.
Source: WJEC Entry Level/Level 1 Foundation Health and Social Care, and Childcare specification, approved by Qualifications Wales, teaching from September 2027, for award from 2029 (© WJEC CBAC Ltd 2026).