Developing a non-clinical T Level industry placement offer

All students are offered an interview, and the induction process is reduced compared to that for health students, as there is no need for life support training or sessions on practical clinical skills. This helps to facilitate a streamlined onboarding while maintaining professional standards. All students complete mandatory training through e‑learning, have a DBS and relevant occupational health checks organised by the education provider, and meet the trust’s industry placement coordinator prior to starting the industry placement. The students are reassured that the education centre serves as a central point to pause for reflection or access staff to address questions and concerns. The trust also meets every two weeks with the education provider to provide updates and address challenges.

All non-clinical industry placements are offered on a day‑release model for one day a week, with the trust embedding rotational placements wherever possible. For example, digital students rotate across service desks and information development teams, while business administration students rotate through the professional education and medical education teams. For some T Level routes, the team is keen to ensure that students rotate with a buddy to increase confidence and provide reciprocal student mentoring opportunities.

The trust has embedded a culture where teams are supported to host students confidently and autonomously. Objectives from the education provider are shared prior to placement, with an emphasis on also embedding professional behaviours, workforce readiness and exposure to real policies, procedures and language. The education provider has attended meetings with areas preparing to offer industry placements. The placement manager communicates regularly with areas offering placements through workshops, connecting with education champions and weekly e‑bulletins. This ensures that T Level industry placements remain visible and helps to address misconceptions.

The trust has also explored collaborative placement models, partnering with the local authority and community teams to widen opportunities, particularly for specialist pathways such as engineering in healthcare settings where students rotate across medical electronics, podiatry, orthotics and prosthetics. The trust has found that in non-clinical spaces senior colleagues are keen to act as mentors, given the relative lack of competing student demands and where longer project‑based tasks suit T Level requirements well. These leaders are also encouraged, where appropriate, to hold suitable tasks temporarily that would suit T Level students.

Expansion is limited only by what the education provider can offer. With increasing student numbers and strong feedback from both mentors and learners, the trust has built a sustainable workforce development strategy where T Level industry placements, across the full range of subjects, are integral.

Prior to starting the pilot, the trust interviewed several students before choosing the two successful candidates to become part of the NCA T Level programme. The students had a values-based interview, which asked about their understanding of finance and procurement, the organisation, and the wider NHS. The trust already had a successful framework for onboarding, modelling the process on undergraduate students on a sandwich year. The T Level students completed the standard trust induction and a local finance induction where they learned about the different finance teams in the trust. While on placement, the students had access to relevant software but no internal drives as the trust found sending files directly was an effective workaround to ensure security.

The students’ mentor has been delighted with how confidently they have adapted to the trust environment and highlighted the importance of regular weekly online check-ins (in supporting their time on placement). As the students rotate through several different teams, it is the mentor’s responsibility to ensure they have a named contact for every day they are on industry placement.

The trust is keen to expand this pilot in the future but will maintain the current approach of students working in pairs or groups during the industry placement. It is keen to expand numbers, but acknowledged the challenge of ensuring seating for students and providing laptops. However, the trust hopes for a future cohort of at least four students. It is also exploring the potential to develop an apprenticeship talent pipeline for finance and procurement T Level students once the offer is well established.

The team adopted a day-release model after engaging with a local education provider. On starting the industry placement, the student was offered an adapted version of the induction provided to undergraduate students on placement. This was supported by an introductory meeting with members of the team, including some senior colleagues who shared their career trajectories and experience. During the introductory period, the mentor was available in-person for the first part of the industry placement with an understanding that over time this can be delegated to others, with a named contact, when student confidence increases. The mentor ensures there is a weekly catch-up and a summary email prior to the industry placement day that outlines upcoming tasks, with relevant colleagues copied in. Colleagues have also supported the student with employability training, including application form writing and interviews skills, supported by a mock interview.

A core part of the industry placement was engaging with the student to understand their areas of interest. This revealed their focus on human resources and finance, which was introduced accordingly. The team has also organised further development opportunities such as developing the student’s presentation skills, support with working with data, and working collaboratively with stakeholders across different teams. While the student provided a range of support, they had one main project to focus on, which enabled them to develop expert knowledge in a defined area. Working on the student’s confidence has been a key focus, and having the core project supported this objective as they were able to get to know some of the organisation’s wider stakeholders, develop communication skills, familiarise themselves with some core admin tasks such as drawing up a meeting agenda and learning project management techniques. 

The team is exploring how, in the future, the student could work directly with undergraduate students, while they are on their placement. This would allow undergraduates to develop their mentoring skills whilst providing an opportunity for the T Level student to understand their learner journey.

The trust has successfully onboarded teams to offer placements by engaging them one-to-one, emphasising both future workforce development goals and the ability to provide a first step for young people. Students are interviewed before starting, with the trust managing interviews on behalf of other stakeholders it collaborates with. At interview, students are asked to demonstrate a basic understanding of the health service, proportionate to their age.

All non-clinical T Level students follow a two-day-a-week model. Digital students rotate between IT support and cybersecurity teams to ensure they have a varied placement experience and increase their understanding of IT roles across the trust. Media students work on projects linked to their qualification, including digital innovation work with the integrated care board, social media support for the hospital radio team, and materials to promote health and care careers (for example, leaflets for social care careers and animations for a school conference). Media students can complete up to twenty percent of their placement hours remotely with robust supervision, in line with industry placement flexibilities.

Media students also interact with the local authority to understand how different stakeholders work together, and they have attended jobs fairs to build awareness of the jobs market and recruitment processes. For remote days, the team shares structured development activities (such as social media training or project management tasks) to then discuss in-person.

The trust has found colleagues in non-clinical areas are enthusiastic about mentoring T Level students, as this is not an opportunity they routinely have. This has been mutually beneficial as students gain insight into functions that support patient care, and staff develop mentoring, coaching and leadership skills.

Student feedback forms have been introduced to evaluate the placement experience and identify improvements. Although non-clinical placements are still in a pilot phase, feedback has been positive and teams are recognising the value of hosting T Level students. The trust is continuing to explore non-clinical industry placement opportunities, for example it has recently developed a placement with the hospital radio team. The team is working on a development program to support T Level students in applying for apprenticeships and entry level roles within the organisation while working with university partners to demonstrate what options are available locally on completion of the T Level qualification.