Advanced Forensic Practitioner Higher Apprenticeship in Custody or Sexual Offences PgCert

Course overview

Doctors, nurses and paramedics working in sexual assault referral centres and within pathways for sexual violence services and police custodial settings will be interested in this course. It meets the United Kingdom Association of Forensic Nurses & Paramedics (UKAFN) Advanced Standards in Education and Training (ASET) in Forensic Practice which is a national benchmark for the competencies required for identified roles within custodial and sexual offence settings.

Successful completion of this course will entitle you to receive a UKAFN ASET certificate, which is recognised by the Faculty of Forensic and Legal Medicine, UKAFN and the College of Paramedics as being the qualification for healthcare practitioners working in forensic practice.

The advanced forensic practitioner role provides evidence for the police, understanding the ethical frameworks of healthcare within the criminal justice system. It ensures complex decision making and takes into account the individuals rights, standards of professional bodies and also respects that there is a public interest and a right to justice. In both sexual offence and custody settings, a forensic practitioner works as an autonomous individual undertaking triage, assessment and care/management plan formation which meets the needs of the criminal justice system, healthcare and safeguarding. This course is jointly delivered with our collaborative partner, the Faculty of Forensic and Legal Medicine, an organisation set up to develop and maintain the highest possible standards of competence and professional integrity in forensic and legal medicine.

How you are assessed

You will be assessed by various methods throughout the 12-month course including; written assignments, presentations, oral and written evidence for court, and a reflective log.

Career opportunities

Typical job roles include sexual offence examiner, forensic nurse practitioner, sexual assault nurse examiner (SANE), forensic medical examiner, forensic physician, forensic nurse examiner, healthcare professional, forensic practitioner, forensic nurse, forensic paramedic.