The Data and AI School of London is an NCFE approved centre for this qualification. Enrol below to begin your learning journey.
← All courses
Level 3 · NCFE Self-paced
Enrolling now NCFE Approved Qualification number 603/2495/8

NCFE CACHE Level 3 Award in Supporting Teaching and Learning

An introduction to supporting teaching and learning in schools. This is the Award, which requires no placement.

Duration: 80 guided learning hours, 120 total qualification time; self-paced online study

Level
Level 3
Qualification number
603/2495/8
Awarding organisation
NCFE
Regulated status
On the RQF, regulated by Ofqual
Guided learning hours
80 hours
Total qualification time
120 hours
UCAS Tariff points
8 at Pass
Delivery
100% online
Study pattern
80 guided learning hours, 120 total qualification time; self-paced online study
NCFE This qualification is awarded by NCFE and regulated by Ofqual

Course overview

This qualification covers the knowledge needed to support teaching and learning in a school, including how children develop, safeguarding, and the role of the teaching assistant.

It is the Award rather than the Certificate. That distinction matters: the Certificate expects around a hundred hours in a school placement, while the Award is knowledge based and can be completed without one, which is why it is the version we offer online.

Assessment is by an internally assessed and externally quality assured portfolio of evidence, with no exams. Grading is achieved or not yet achieved: there are no pass, merit or distinction grades in this qualification. Every assessment criterion in a unit has to be met for that unit to be achieved, and if something is missing your assessor tells you what it is and you can submit again.

Learners who achieve this qualification could progress to the Level 3 Progression Certificate in Supporting Teaching and Learning, or into the workforce.

Delivery is 100% online with tutor support. Tutor support means you can email your tutor with a question and get an answer within 2 working days. Feedback on assessed work is separate and takes up to 10 working days.

What you will study

The units below, their unit reference numbers and their guided learning hours are taken directly from the NCFE qualification specification.

Unit Title Unit reference Hours
01 Schools and colleges as organisations (mandatory)
5 learning outcomes
  1. Understand the structure of education from early years to post- compulsory education
    • 1.1 Summarise types of early years provision
    • 1.2 Identify key stages of the statutory framework including National Curriculum: procedures for assessment and benchmarking in relation to teacher target setting, for learning in own Home Nation
    • 1.3 Explain post-16 options for young people and adults
  2. Understand how schools and colleges are organised in terms of roles and responsibilities
    • 2.1 Explain the role held by: • governors • senior management team • other statutory roles, eg SENCO • teachers/tutors • support staff roles
    • 2.2 Identify external professionals who may work in education
  3. Understand teamwork in schools and colleges
    • 3.1 List characteristics of effective teamwork
    • 3.2 Explain the role of communication in establishing professional relationships for effective teamwork
  4. Understand educational ethos, mission, aims and values
    • 4.1 Identify ethos, mission, aims and values of an educational setting
    • 4.2 Explain how the ethos, mission, aims and values of an educational setting may be reflected in working practices
  5. Understand the purpose of policies and procedures in education
    • 5.1 Identify the policies and procedures schools and colleges have relating to: • staff • pupil welfare • teaching and learning • equality, diversity and inclusion • health, safety and security
    • 5.2 Explain how policies and procedures contribute to quality in education
 T/616/5878 10
02 Support health and safety in a learning environment (mandatory)
5 learning outcomes
  1. Understand how to plan and provide environments that support children and young people's health and safety
    • 1.1 Identify legislation in relation to health and safety in a learning environment
    • 1.2 Describe the factors to take into account when planning healthy and safe indoor and outdoor environments
    • 1.3 Explain how health and safety is monitored and maintained in the learning environment
  2. Understand how to recognise and manage risks to health, safety and security in a learning environment or during off-site visits
    • 2.1 Give examples of potential risks and hazards in a learning environment
  3. Understand how to support children and young people to assess and manage risk for themselves
    • 3.1 Explain why it is important to take a balanced approach to risk management
    • 3.2 Explain the dilemma between the rights and choices of children and young people, and health and safety requirements
    • 3.3 Give examples of ways to support children and young people to assess and manage risk in a learning environment
  4. Understand appropriate responses to accidents, incidents, emergencies and illness in the learning environment and during off-site visits
    • 4.1 Explain the policies and procedures of the learning environment in response to accidents, incidents, emergencies and illness
    • 4.2 Explain the correct procedures for recording and reporting accidents, incidents, injuries, signs of illness and other emergencies
  5. Understand own role in assisting in the administration of medication
    • 5.1 Outline the organisational policies and procedures for the management of the administration of medication
    • 5.2 Describe own responsibilities and accountabilities in relation to the administration of medication
 A/616/5879 20
03 Understand how to safeguard children and young people (mandatory)
5 learning outcomes
  1. Understand legislation, guidelines, policies and procedures for safeguarding children and young people
    • 1.1 Outline current legislation, guidelines, policies and procedures within Home Nations affecting the safeguarding of children and young people
  2. Understand how to work in partnership with other organisations to safeguard children and young people
    • 2.1 Explain the need to safeguard children and young people
    • 2.2 Explain the impact of a child or young person-centred approach
    • 2.3 Explain what is meant by partnership working in the context of safeguarding
    • 2.4 Describe the roles and responsibilities of the different organisations that may be involved when a child or young person has been abused or harmed
  3. Understand the need to ensure children and young people's safety and protection in the learning environment
    • 3.1 Explain why we need to ensure children and young people are protected from harm within the learning environment
    • 3.2 Identify the risks and possible consequences for children and young people of being online and using digital mobile devices
    • 3.3 Describe ways of reducing risk to children and young people from: • social networking • internet use
    • 3.4 Explain how support staff can take steps to protect themselves within their everyday practice in the learning environment and during off-site activities
  4. Understand how to respond to evidence or concerns that a child or young person has been abused or harmed
    • 4.1 Explain child protection within the wider context of safeguarding children and young people
    • 4.2 Identify different types of abuse and bullying
    • 4.3 Outline the possible signs, symptoms, indicators and behaviours that may cause concern in the context of safeguarding
    • 4.4 Describe the actions to take if a child or young person alleges harm or abuse in line with policies and procedures of own setting
    • 4.5 Explain the rights that children, young people and their carers have in situations where harm or abuse is suspected or alleged
    • 4.6 Explain how serious case reviews inform practice
  5. Understand how to work with children and young people to support their well-being
    • 5.1 Describe ways support staff can work with children and young people to build self-confidence and self-esteem
    • 5.2 Describe the role of support staff in recognising the signs of mental health concerns in children and young people
    • 5.3 Identify the signs of possible mental health concerns in children and young people
    • 5.4 Explain the need to work with children and young people to enable them to develop emotional resilience and mental well-being
 M/616/5880 25
04 Understand how children and young people develop (mandatory)
3 learning outcomes
  1. Understand the expected pattern of development for children and young people from birth to 19 years
    • 1.1 Describe milestones in children's holistic development from birth to 19 years
  2. Understand the factors that influence children and young people's development and how these affect practice
    • 2.1 Explain how children and young people's development is influenced by a range of biological factors
    • 2.2 Explain how children and young people's development is influenced by a range of external factors
    • 2.3 Explain how theories of development and educational frameworks influence current practice
  3. Understand how to monitor children and young people's development and interventions that should take place if this is not following the expected pattern
    • 3.1 Explain how to monitor children and young people's development using different methods
    • 3.2 Identify how other professionals and different types of interventions can promote positive outcomes for children and young people where development is not following the expected pattern
 A/616/5882 25
Total guided learning hours 80

Entry requirements

  • There are no formal entry requirements. No school placement is needed for this Award.
Take it with you

The course guide

Everything on this page as one document you can keep, print, or send to whoever is deciding with you.

  • All 4 units, with the hours behind each one
  • How you are assessed, and who checks the marking
  • How paying works, and what is due when
  • Entry requirements and where the qualification leads
Download the guide (PDF)

Generated from this qualification's record, so the units and hours in it are the ones on this page. The fee is here on the page rather than in the guide, so a saved copy cannot quote you an old one.

How you are assessed

Your work is assessed by our qualified assessors, internally quality assured, and externally quality assured by NCFE. Assessment is against the criteria published in the qualification specification, and your assessor tells you what is needed before you start each unit.

For what happens after you submit: who marks it, who checks the marking, how long feedback takes and what to do if you disagree with a decision, see how assessment works.

If you need an adjustment to how you are assessed, for a disability or any other reason, ask us before you begin. We arrange adjustments under our Reasonable Adjustments policy, and you can request one online.

How we assess and quality assure is set out in DAIS-POL-016 Assessment and Internal Quality Assurance.

How you study, and what you need

You study online through our virtual learning environment, which is where the teaching material, your assessment submissions, your feedback and your progress all live. You work at your own pace, with tutor support throughout. Everyone completes a short online induction before starting an assessed unit.

What you need to take part
Device Laptop or desktop computer
Operating system Windows 10 or macOS 10.15 or later
Browser Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox, latest version
Internet speed 10 Mbps download and 5 Mbps upload
Webcam Required for live sessions and identity verification
Microphone Required for live sessions

These are the minimum requirements published in DAIS-POL-024 Online Learning and Digital Delivery.

Support, and how quickly we reply

These are the response times we commit to in policy, not an aspiration.

What How Response
General questions Message your tutor in the VLE Within 2 working days
Assessment feedback Returned in the VLE or e-portfolio Within 10 working days of submission
Technical problems Technical support email Within 1 working day
Urgent welfare concerns Email to the Designated Safeguarding Lead Within 1 working day

Published in DAIS-POL-024 and DAIS-POL-009 Learner Support.

Registration and your certificate

We register you with NCFE before you begin any assessed unit, and we collect your Unique Learner Number as part of that. When your assessment decisions are finalised and quality assured, we claim your certificate through the NCFE portal and you are notified digitally. The certificate comes from NCFE, not from us.

Set out in DAIS-POL-008 Learner Registration and Certification.

Progression

Progression: prepares you for a teaching assistant role and for further study in supporting teaching and learning. UCAS Tariff points: 8 at Pass (UCAS, October 2026). Universities set their own entry requirements, so check how the course you want counts it.

Other names for this qualification

The regulated title is NCFE CACHE Level 3 Award in Supporting Teaching and Learning, qualification number 603/2495/8. People also look for it as:

  • Level 3 CACHE Supporting Teaching and Learning
  • CACHE Supporting Teaching and Learning Level 3
  • NCFE Level 3 CACHE Supporting Teaching and Learning
  • 603/2495/8
  • NCFE 603/2495/8
  • CACHE Supporting Teaching and Learning course online
  • CACHE Supporting Teaching and Learning qualification UK
  • CACHE Supporting Teaching and Learning distance learning

If you arrived searching one of those, you are in the right place: they all describe this one qualification.

Fees and paying for it

Ways to pay
Pay in full, or spread the cost over 3 interest-free payments with Klarna.
Nothing is paid when you apply. Payment is only taken after you accept an offer, and we will confirm the exact amounts with you before then. Fees and how to pay.

Klarna Spread the cost with Klarna

Investing in your own skills
Your fee pays for the part that gives a qualification its value: assessment by a qualified assessor, independent quality assurance, and a certificate issued by NCFE on the Regulated Qualifications Framework, regulated by Ofqual.
You can start now rather than waiting for a September intake, and study around work. Tutor replies come within 2 working days, and assessment feedback within 10.
You finish with evidence as well as knowledge: a portfolio of your own work, and a qualification that stays on your record for life. Of everything you can spend money on, your own skills are the one thing that follows you into every job you ever take.

Many employers will pay for this, and most people never ask. Send them the one-page case: what it costs, what it asks of the business, and how to check us independently. How employer funding works.

Common questions

Who awards NCFE CACHE Level 3 Award in Supporting Teaching and Learning, and how do I get my certificate?

NCFE CACHE Level 3 Award in Supporting Teaching and Learning is awarded by NCFE, an Ofqual-approved awarding organisation, and sits on the Regulated Qualifications Framework (RQF). The qualification number is 603/2495/8. The Data and AI School of London is an NCFE approved centre. We register you with NCFE before you start any assessed unit and collect your Unique Learner Number. Once your work is assessed and quality assured we claim your certificate through the NCFE portal, and it is issued by NCFE rather than by us.

How long does NCFE CACHE Level 3 Award in Supporting Teaching and Learning take?

This qualification carries 80 guided learning hours and a total qualification time of 120 hours. It is studied online at your own pace, so how long it takes in calendar time depends on how much you can commit each week.

What do I need before I can start?

There are no formal entry requirements. No school placement is needed for this Award. We assess every applicant individually and will tell you if a different level would suit you better.

Can I study this entirely online?

Yes. Teaching, materials and assessment are all delivered through our Moodle-based virtual learning environment, so you can study from anywhere in the UK. You need a laptop or desktop computer, a current version of Chrome or Firefox, and a broadband connection of at least 10 Mbps down and 5 Mbps up. Tutor support is available throughout, and we answer questions within 2 working days and return assessment feedback within 10 working days of submission.

Can I enrol now, and when do I pay?

The fee is £399. Enrolment is open, so you can apply online today. Nothing is paid at application: payment is taken only after you accept an offer.

Not sure this is the right qualification?

Ask before you apply. We will say honestly if a different level would suit you better.

Worth reading first

More from the blog

Other qualifications

See all qualifications