EVIDENCING YOUR PRACTICE - 2025/6
Module code: PSYM128
Module Overview
This module provides trainees with opportunities to gain hands on experience of the Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner (PWP) role in a clinical context. This is important in enabling trainees to advance themselves as autonomous professionals who are capable of problem solving and ethical decision making. It also helps trainees to develop the transferable skills required by PWP employers and is designed to strengthen the application of their learning from modules PSYM126, PSYM127 and PSYM129 in practice. This is achieved through supervised clinical practice which helps trainees to make theory-practice links and to accrue the clinical experiences required to pass this module i.e. the clinical and supervision hours and experiences specified in the national PWP training curriculum.
Module provider
Psychology
Module Leader
BEDFORD Laura (Psychology)
Number of Credits: 15
ECTS Credits: 7.5
Framework: FHEQ Level 7
Module cap (Maximum number of students): N/A
Overall student workload
Independent Learning Hours: 24.5
Lecture Hours: 1
Tutorial Hours: 0.5
Practical/Performance Hours: 120
Guided Learning: 2
Captured Content: 2
Module Availability
Crosses academic years
Prerequisites / Co-requisites
N/A
Module content
Indicative content includes:
- Reflective practice
- Supervision
- Engagement skills
- Assessment skills
- Intervention skills
- Evaluation skills
- Case management
- Transferable skills e.g. time management, organisational skills, communication skills, record keeping and problem solving.
Assessment pattern
| Assessment type | Unit of assessment | Weighting |
|---|---|---|
| Coursework | Portfolio element 1: portfolio | Pass/Fail |
| Coursework | Portfolio element 2: essay | 100 |
Alternative Assessment
None.
Assessment Strategy
The programme’s assessments are intended to be authentic. This means that they are designed to assess (and also to support the development) of the skills and competencies that Psychological Wellbeing Practitioners require in real clinical practice. As such they should enhance trainees’ employability; including their capacity to work with diverse populations. The use of formative feedback also aims to develop trainees’ resourcefulness and resilience. Formative feedback enables by requiring trainees to engage with constructive critique and to use their resulting learning to strengthen their future professional and educational practices.
Summative assessment
The summative assessment for this module consists of:
- Coursework, a portfolio of practice, pass-fail (addresses learning outcomes 1-18)
- Coursework, 100%, a 500-word reflection on a practice competency which is a strength and one that requires development (addresses learning outcomes 1-18)
Both assessments must be passed within 2 attempts to pass the module. The graded assessment (the reflection) is marked at FHEQ level 7 with a pass mark of 50%. The portfolio is a pass-fail assessment.
Formative assessment
Trainees are supported to prepare their portfolio through the mid-way review process during which the trainees’ tutor reviews a sample of their portfolio elements and provides them with feedback on this. Clinical supervisors also monitor the completion of portfolio elements and provide feedback on this.
There is no formative assessment for the 500-word reflection. It is expected that trainees use their feedback from their module PSYM126 essay, module PSYM129 case report and PSYM129 viva to facilitate their writing of this assignment.
Feedback
Trainees are provided with formative verbal and / or written feedback on their portfolio by their tutor through the mid-way review process should any changes be required at that time point. Feedback from their supervisors might be verbal or written and is ongoing through the year.
Trainees are provided with written feedback on their summative portfolio and written reflection.
Module aims
- Develop trainees as critically reflective and professional practitioners who exhibit the values and principles enshrined in the NHS constitution and the British Psychological Society's ethical framework.
- Enable trainees to acquire the transferable skills required by Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner employers.
- Ensure that trainees can apply their university-based learning (from modules PSYM126, PSYM127 and PSYM129) in a clinical context.
Learning outcomes
| Attributes Developed | ||
| 001 | Demonstrates competency in undertaking and recording a range of assessment formats. This should include both triage within an IAPT service and problem focused assessments. | KCPT |
| 002 | Demonstrates experience and competence in the assessment and correct identification of presenting problems across a range of problem descriptors including depression and two or more anxiety disorders. | KCPT |
| 003 | Demonstrates the common factor competencies necessary to engage patients across the range of assessment formats | KCPT |
| 004 | Demonstrates understanding of the complexity of mental health difficulties, to conceptualise comorbidity of mental disorders and prioritise the appropriate primary problem in the context of both physical and mental health comorbidity | KCPT |
| 005 | Demonstrate competence in accurate recording of interviews and questionnaire assessments using paper and electronic record keeping systems | KCPT |
| 006 | Demonstrate competence in identifying patients at assessment who do not fit the criteria for treatment at Step 2 (e.g. those with PTSD, social anxiety disorder or severe mental health problems) and facilitate appropriate stepping up or onward referral. | KCPT |
| 007 | Demonstrates experience and competence in the selection and delivery of treatment of a range of presenting problems using evidence-based low- intensity interventions across a range of problem descriptors, including depression and two or more anxiety disorders, and across all modes of intervention (in person, telephone, video platform). | KCPT |
| 008 | Demonstrate an understanding of problems that should not be treated at Step 2, and where and how appropriate treatment should be accessed for these. | KCPT |
| 009 | Demonstrate the ability to use common factor competencies to manage emotional distress and maintain therapeutic alliances to support patients using low-intensity interventions. | KCPT |
| 010 | Demonstrate competence in delivering low-intensity interventions using a range of methods including one-to-one treatment (in person, via video consultation, via telephone, interactive text or computerised cognitive behavioural therapy (cCBT)) and where possible guided self-help groups (in person and via video). | KCPT |
| 011 | Demonstrate competence in selecting and revising mode of delivery, as necessary on an ongoing basis depending on patient choice, suitability, etc. | KCPT |
| 012 | Demonstrate knowledge and understanding to map core skills into text-based interventions. | KCPT |
| 013 | Demonstrate high quality clinical note keeping and effective use of clinical outcome measures to shape and adapt low intensity interventions. | KCPT |
| 014 | Demonstrates the ability to support service access and to engage with people from diverse demographic, social and cultural backgrounds in assessment and delivery of low-intensity interventions. This could include adaptations to practice in line with positive practice guides, using interpretation services or self-help materials for people who are deaf or whose first language is not English, and/or adapting self-help materials for people with learning or literacy difficulties including as a result of cognitive or neurological conditions | KCPT |
| 015 | Demonstrates the ability to effectively manage a large caseload efficiently and safely, including step-up within NHS Talking Therapies, onward referral to employment support and signposted services, or other referral beyond NHS Talking Therapies | KCPT |
| 016 | Demonstrates the ability to use supervision to the benefit of effective (a) case management and (b) clinical skills development. This should include: a) a report on a case management supervision session demonstrating ability to review caseload, bring patients at agreed pre-determined thresholds and provide comprehensive and succinct case material b) a report on use of clinical skills supervision including details of clinical skills questions brought, learning and implementation. | KCPT |
| 017 | Demonstrates competence applying relevant professional and ethical guidelines (such as the IAPT manual, BPS's ethical framework, the professional and ethical guidelines of UCL's CBT competencies framework, HEE's Health and Care Digital capabilities framework, and Digital Health Skills' digital competency) to in-person and digital assessments. This includes managing consent to record and risks such as those associated with digital working | KCPT |
| 018 | Demonstrates competence and commitment to eliminating all forms of discrimination from the experience of staff and patients'. This includes reducing inequity of access to and outcomes of mental health services, across all protected characteristics and other characteristics associated with inequity. | KCPT |
Attributes Developed
C - Cognitive/analytical
K - Subject knowledge
T - Transferable skills
P - Professional/Practical skills
Methods of Teaching / Learning
Reflective capacity is an essential attribute for PWPs given that it has been associated with enhanced decision making, better patient care and improved health service delivery. The importance of reflection is evident in the module’s learning outcome which require trainees to develop this meta-competence if they are to achieve the required outcomes. To support trainees in this regard, reflective learning is used as the primary method of teaching and learning on this module and this is consistent with the approach taken in modules PSYM126, PSYM127 and PSYM129. The specific methods used to support reflective learning include:
- Self-practice, self-reflection.
- University directed independent study tasks from the Evidencing Your Practice Pack
- Peer observation and feedback
- Self-assessment
- Shadowing
- Mentoring
- Supervised clinical practice, within both clinical skills and case management supervision
Indicated Lecture Hours (which may also include seminars, tutorials, workshops and other contact time) are approximate and may include in-class tests where one or more of these are an assessment on the module. In-class tests are scheduled/organised separately to taught content and will be published on to student personal timetables, where they apply to taken modules, as soon as they are finalised by central administration. This will usually be after the initial publication of the teaching timetable for the relevant semester.
Reading list
https://readinglists.surrey.ac.uk
Upon accessing the reading list, please search for the module using the module code: PSYM128
Other information
In line with the 5 pillars of the University of Surrey’s Curriculum Framework, the module aims to support trainees to develop strengths in the following areas.
Resourcefulness and resilience
Enhancing trainees’ resourcefulness and resilience is a central focus of this module. Modules PSYM126, PSYM127 and PSYM129 also support trainees in this area this is a university context. This module therefore aims to help trainees further to develop their capacity to show these attributes in an employment setting. The module achieves this through the provision of supervised clinical practice and university directed independent learning activities. These learning opportunities promote trainees’ resilience and resourcefulness through increasing their capacity to independently identify and address their learning needs, to tolerate uncertainty, to use their initiative and to exercise complex and independent decision making.
Digital capabilities
On this module, trainees are supported to accrue the digital capabilities that are required of Psychological Wellbeing Practitioners in a real work context through hands on experience. This is facilitated by observation, feedback and supervised clinical practice. Specific digital capabilities that trainees gain experience of using include patient management systems, video-conferencing platforms and online guided self-help packages. To successfully pass the module portfolio, trainees need to have demonstrated competence in these areas in practice.
Employability
Increasing trainees’ employability is an important aim of this module given that it is practice based. Through supervised clinical practice, shadowing, observation and feedback and clinical experiences trainees are supported to acquire new transferable skills and to hone pre-existing ones. This includes the competencies that they developed on modules PSYM126, PSYM127 and PSYM129. Examples include communication skills, teamwork, effective time management, IT skills, professionalism, ethical conduct and problem solving. Trainees need demonstrate these kinds of skills to pass the module portfolio assessment.
Global and cultural capabilities
This module runs concurrent to modules PSYM126, PSYM127 and PSYM129. It therefore supports trainees to apply what they have learnt in these modules about global and cultural issues in practice. This is facilitated by clinical skills and case management sessions during which trainees’ supervisors help them to make theory and practice links. In these sessions, trainees’ supervisors also facilitate the development of trainees’ critical reflection skills (in relation to equality, diversity and inclusion) through reflective dialogue. Additionally, trainees gain hands on experience working with diverse clients and in varied contexts. This provides them with experiences that they can use on university taught days for other modules to support them to make theory practice links. Trainees must draw on their clinical experiences of working with diversity in their module PSYM129 assignments.
Sustainability
Trainees are introduced to issues of sustainability through modules PSYM126, PSYM127 and PSYM129. However, this module aims to support trainees to develop their critical reflections on this area and ability to engage with related patient concerns through reflective dialogue in clinical supervision and university directed independent learning / skills practices.
Programmes this module appears in
| Programme | Semester | Classification | Qualifying conditions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Advanced Practice in Psychological Wellbeing PGCert | Cross Year | Core | Each unit of assessment must be passed at 50% to pass the module |
Please note that the information detailed within this record is accurate at the time of publishing and may be subject to change. This record contains information for the most up to date version of the programme / module for the 2025/6 academic year.