Level 4 Diploma in Associate Ambulance Practitioner Top-up

The top-up takes you from assisting to practising. The emphasis throughout is on autonomous decision-making under pressure.

• Anatomy, physiology and pathophysiology — the depth a Level 4 practitioner is expected to work from
• Patient assessment — structured assessment, clinical reasoning and knowing when your patient is deteriorating
• Advanced airway management — including supraglottic airways and the oxygen therapy that goes with them
• Trauma care — the effects of trauma on the body, catastrophic haemorrhage, immobilisation and extrication
• Medical emergencies — cardiac, respiratory, neurological, metabolic and obstetric
• Pharmacology — the drugs within an AAP’s scope, their effects and their limits
• Professional standards — scope of practice, consent, capacity, safeguarding and record keeping
• Resuscitation — adult and paediatric, to current Resuscitation Council UK guidance

The FutureQuals Level 4 Diploma for Associate Ambulance Practitioners (RQF).

This is a nationally regulated qualification and the recognised standard for the AAP role. It is the same qualification achieved through the apprenticeship route — what differs is how you get there and how it is paid for.

Where it takes you

AAP roles across NHS ambulance trusts and the independent ambulance sector, and a recognised step on the route towards paramedic training should you want it.

This is a top-up, so it assumes you are already working in the role.

• You are working as an Emergency Care Assistant or in an equivalent ambulance role, with current operational experience, 6 months minimum.
• You have access to clinical practice hours. The programme requires substantial supervised practice, and you need an employer or placement that can provide it.
• You hold a full UK driving licence, with C1 if your role requires it.
• You can attend both two-week blocks in Stockton-on-Tees. Dates are published in advance so you can get them in the rota early.

Not sure whether you qualify?

Ring us before you book. Prior learning on this course is rarely a straight yes or no, and ten minutes on the phone will settle it.

There are several ways to pay, and a few ways to pay less.

What the £4,500 covers

The course fee is £4,500 including VAT. It covers the full 36-week programme, both classroom blocks and all assessment. It excludes placement, and it excludes accommodation, which is added separately at £75 per night only if you want it.

Enhanced Learning Credits

If you are serving or have left the armed forces, ELC can cover a substantial part of this course. How much depends on your length of eligible service.

• Lower tier, up to £1,000 — 80% of the course cost capped at £1,000. You need at least six years’ eligible service if you enlisted on or after 1 April 2013, or four years accrued before 1 April 2017.
• Higher tier, up to £2,000 — at least eight years’ eligible service.

You can claim once per financial year, up to three claims in total, and you need to contribute at least 20% of the fee yourself before the course starts.

If you have already left, the course must start before your claim window closes — five years from your last day of service if you left on or after 1 April 2016. Tell us at the point of enquiry and we will help you work backwards from that date.

Employer booking discount — 15%

Employers booking four or more learners receive 15% off. The discount applies to employer bookings rather than to individuals grouping together. Contact us before booking and we will quote you.

Klarna

You can spread the cost through Klarna at checkout. We are paid in full at the point of booking and you repay Klarna over the term you agree with them, under their terms.

Secure your place with 20%

You can book with a 20% deposit and settle the balance before the course starts.

Ask your employer

Independent ambulance providers often fund this, because an AAP is worth considerably more to them than an ECA. We can send a quote addressed to your employer.

Staying overnight

Travelling to us from outside Teesside? We have agreed learner rates with the Sporting Lodge Inn at Stainton, a 5 to 10 minute drive from our Stockton-on-Tees centre, with easy access from the A19 and A174.

• £75 per night — bed and breakfast
• £95 per night — dinner, bed and breakfast, including a two-course evening meal and a drink

Both rates include free on-site parking and free use of the hotel gym and 25-metre pool. There is a pub and restaurant on site.

These rates are only available through us, not directly with the hotel. Add the nights you need to your checkout when you book your course, and we will arrange it and confirm the details with you.

Five classroom days means five nights, not ten. At £75 that is £375 for the week, with breakfast and parking included.

Rooms are subject to availability, so book as early as you can. Plans change — cancel your room up to 24 hours before arrival and we will refund it.

Download our Teesside accommodation and local area guide for learners (PDF)

Our centre is Faraday House, Sopwith Close, Stockton-on-Tees, TS18 3TT, with free on-site parking and direct access from the A66 and A19.

By rail

Darlington sits on the East Coast Mainline, under three hours from London King’s Cross, with direct services from Edinburgh, Newcastle, York and Leeds. Eaglescliffe is the nearest station to the centre, with parking, cycle storage and ticket facilities.

By air

Teesside International Airport is around twenty minutes away and Newcastle Airport about an hour, with direct flights from Aberdeen, Belfast and Dublin.

What it costs to attend

Teesside is straightforward to reach from anywhere in the UK, and cheaper to stay in than most training locations.