The Level 1/Level 2 Cambridge National in Child Development is aimed at students aged 14-16 years and will develop knowledge, understanding and practical skills that would be used in the Childcare sector.  

This vocational course provides students with the knowledge and understanding to become well rounded adults who have the ability to nurture children through their own personal lives or as a professional. We aim to provide the students with the knowledge to understand the importance of reproduction, antenatal care, postnatal care and how to safely look after a young child in order to give them the best start in their lives. 

The Child Development course is based on real life experiences and will enable them to gain practical experience of aspects of Child Development and work with young children. The course has an equal focus on both examination and course work enabling students to demonstrate their ability to learn and apply the syllabus to personal case studies. 

The course teaches our students that the responsibility for the well-being of a child starts before conception and this examination unit aims to provide learners with an overview of the roles and responsibilities of parenthood alongside an understanding of reproduction and pre-conceptual, antenatal and postnatal care, conditions for development, childhood illnesses and child safety. 

The learners will develop an appreciation of the importance of creating the best conditions for a child to thrive. This includes creating a child-friendly home environment, including social safety and the care, management and prevention of childhood illnesses. 

This is an engaging qualification where you will use your learning in practical, real-life situations, such as:  

• preparing a feed or meal for a child 

• choosing suitable equipment to use in a childcare setting  

• planning suitable play activities  

• helping to prevent accidents in a childcare setting.  

This will help you to develop independence and confidence in using skills that would be relevant to the Childcare sector. The qualification will also help you to develop learning and skills that can be used in other life and work situations, such as:  

• research skills – for example, within the coursework assignment students will need to complete research for equipment to help make decisions on which to choose and explain why  

• communication skills – for example, within the coursework assignment students will need to make recommendations to the nursery on how accidents can be prevented. 

What knowledge and skills will you develop as part of this qualification and how might these be of use and value in further studies?  

Working as a childcare professional needs an understanding of the care needs for children of all ages. This qualification will help you to develop knowledge, understanding and skills that will allow you to help and support those in your care, starting from pre-conception through to children aged birth to five years. 

It is important that childcare settings provide a safe and nurturing environment to care for babies and young children, as well as providing activities and support to help them develop. This qualification will allow you to gain knowledge and skills to help provide such an environment for children in your care.  

The knowledge and skills you develop will help you to progress onto further study in the care sector. This may be other vocational qualifications, such as the Level 2 or Level 3 OCR Cambridge Technicals in Health and Social Care; the T Level Technical Qualification in Education and Childcare or the Early Years Educator Apprenticeship. The qualification also helps to develop other transferable skills, such as research and communication skills that will be valuable in other life and work situations.