A total of 166 people who promote health within local communities in the West Midlands have now joined this highly successful scheme which supports and assesses public health practitioners for national registration with the UKPHR.

Under the West Midlands Public Health Practitioner Development Scheme, practitioners are developed and assessed against the UKPHR practitioner standards for core public health practice. Only practitioners who have been through a scheme such as this are eligible to apply to the UKPHR for registration as a public health practitioner. Health Education West Midlands is now inviting applications to its fifth cohort of practitioners.

What does the Scheme involve?

The Scheme will support public health practitioners (those below the specialist level) and train local assessors to provide a workforce assessed and certified as meeting the national UKPHR standards at an agreed level of competence (level 5 of the public health skills & career framework, PHSCF) equivalent to other "practitioners" in the NHS.

It gives local and national recognition through a quality-assured process of assessment and verification to the PH practitioners across the wide range of multi-sector organisations who contribute to the promotion, improvement and protection of health.

What support is available?

Practitioners on the scheme are supported through facilitated learning sets and attend masterclasses in priority areas of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) to enable them to complete a developmental portfolio of evidence of competence against the UKPHR practitioner standards by November 2015.

Each practitioner attends at least three facilitated learning sets, where they are supported in preparing their portfolio and receive one-to-one feedback on progress.

Peer support is crucial, with the practitioners very much benefiting from sharing their work with each other and talking through any concerns.

Practitioners also have the offer of a UKPHR-trained mentor should they require one, and all are assigned a UKPHR-trained assessor.

Recruitment process

The pioneering Scheme, launched in January 2011, invites applications from public health teams, local government, primary care or any of the health and social care organisations including voluntary and third sectors who promote, protect, advocate for, develop and improve health with local communities and groups in the West Midlands.

Why should I join?

Sally James, Public Health Workforce Specialist for Health Education West Midlands, said: "This scheme demonstrates our local commitment to robust professional development for the practitioner workforce and is of particular importance to practitioners who are taking significant responsibility in commissioning and providing public health programmes who do not have any professional registration.

"The scheme helps develop and enhance the skills and competencies of the public health and wider public health workforces and can inform how best a future public health workforce can be transformed to meet the challenges and opportunities of the future, recognising various career pathways and different entry points into public health.

"The scheme demonstrates the real potential for flexibility to move across employment sectors through the training and education opportunities provided."

Working with UKPHR processes and frameworks to provide support, guidance and quality assurance of assessment against the practitioner standards, this Scheme will ensure locally accredited practitioners can apply to the UKPHR for national recognition.

Who should join?

• Practitioners
• Potential assessors
• Potential mentors
• Potential verifiers

How do I find out more?

The Scheme is now inviting new applicants with the launch of Cohort 5. Please see key background information webpage Public Health Practitioners to assist you in beginning to collate evidence against the UKPHR practitioner standards to build your portfolio in readiness. For further information, contact Sally James, Public Health Workforce Specialist, Health Education West Midlands on 0121 695 2481 or sally.james@wm.hee.nhs.uk