Integrated Health and Social Care with Foundation Year

This practice-led course is designed for students with or without a health and social care background who aspire to support or manage transformative health and care projects; it would also suit professionals who want to approach leadership in care settings with a strong grasp of data-driven decision making. With specific focus on health inequalities, challenges across the lifespan, integrated care and leadership, you graduate able to address the challenges confronting policymakers and professionals grappling with fast-changing, contemporary social issues.

Foundation Year

Whether you’re returning to learning and require additional help and support to up-skill, or if you didn’t quite meet the grades to pursue an undergraduate course, taking a Foundation Year can provide a fantastic entry route to a degree-level qualification. The Foundation Year supports you to build up your academic writing skills and numeracy while exploring a range of subject-specific content so you are fully prepared for the core three-year course. You will need to successfully complete the Foundation Year to progress on to the first year of your degree.

Facilities and specialist equipment

• Seven-storey library with an extensive range of physical and digital resources

• Bespoke lecture theatres, presentation rooms and group study spaces

• Simulated learning facilities mimicking workplace scenarios

Career-powered links
We work collaboratively with statutory and voluntary agencies in Luton, Bedford, and the surrounding areas on health and social care projects and large-scale research. Our staff and alumni work on the Bedford, Luton and Milton Keynes (BLMK) Integrated Care Board in policy development and analytical roles; these staff are engaged as practice partners on the course. Students work on projects in collaboration with statutory and voluntary agencies.

Your student experience

Gain core knowledge in health care, social policy, data analysis, governance and leadership while exploring areas such as health inequalities; mental health and addictions; digital health; health and care policies; health prevention and social outcomes.

Actively prepare for the workplace while you study with virtual placements that develop professional skills and competencies.

Virtual placements take place in simulated learning facilities that mimic workplace scenarios, building your understanding of professional behaviours and enhancing your employability skills.

From your second year, tailor your studies to your interests or chosen graduate career with a range of optional units.

Consolidate your learning through an embedded work-based unit; you also have the option to undertake a community-based final project instead of a dissertation

Learn from an academic team who either work in the field or are research active in key contemporary areas. Their expertise feeds back directly into their teaching.

Develop resilience and innovation - core skills to navigate the complex and fast-changing landscape of the care sector.

Engage with guest speakers at the forefront of the field in our interactive workshops and seminars. Several Seats, Tuff2Talk, Space2Talk and ice&fire (Actors for Human Rights) are some examples of our guest speakers.

Broaden your horizons with subject-relevant field trips. There is an excellent synergy between campuses, with students frequently attending events together and visiting each others’ campuses.

Course modules

To build your academic and research skills, we include special units that prepare you for researching and writing your assessments and final-year dissertation: Introducing academic skills (Year 1); Research 1: collecting data and Research 2: exploring data (Year 2).

Year 1
Introduction to research and social enquiry – How and why we carry out social science research, and the current debates in the field. Career planning for social scientists – Consider possible graduate destinations, pulling together your own personal development plan. Foundations of health and social care practice – Explore ways to meet local health needs and how these priorities are affected by national care standards. Sociology of health – Explore the interaction between society, health and illness in areas such as age, race and ethnicity, disability, gender, employment and so on. The principles and practice of inclusivity in integrated health and social care service delivery – How inclusive, integrated services are developed and delivered.

Year 2
Living with mental health conditions - What it means to live with a mental health condition and receive mental health care, and how these can impact families. Integrated and inter-professional responses to care across the lifespan - Learn how different UK health professionals work together to reduce health inequalities. Work-related experience in health and social care - A work experience opportunity where you can put your ability and skills into practice in different settings.

You also have the choice of three optional units:
•    Social prescribing
•    Addictions and society
•    Population health management

Year 3
Safeguarding in health and social care practice – Learn to spot potential safeguarding risks and know what actions professionals should take in response to concerns. SASS Change Maker project dissertation – Deliver a project that will create change and address an identified need in a community-based organisation. SASS Change Maker research dissertation - Create a research proposal, address its ethical considerations and conduct an in-depth study aligned with your course and career goals. Leading improvement in health and social care services - Develop the ability to lead on and implement changes that improve services across a number of related sectors.

You also have the choice of four optional units:
•    Young people, the urban environment and social determinants of health
•    Health and social care in an ageing society
•    Digital health
•    Promoting better health outcomes

We make every effort to ensure the information here is accurate; however, for the most up-to-date information, visit our website.