Free Online Care Courses for People Who Work in Care

Our courses cover the topics that care employers ask about most often: the Care Certificate standards, safeguarding adults and children, paediatric first aid theory, and moving and handling.

The courses are free. There is no charge for the learning, the assessment or the certificate of completion. You do need to sign up by applying for a place, and every application is reviewed manually by a person. That means access is not instant, and we do not promise a start date. We explain how the review works below.

The health and social care workforce looks after people at some of the most important moments of their lives, and every learner starts somewhere. Our free care courses are meant to give learners a clear, plain-English introduction to topics that come up in induction and day-to-day work, whether you support adults in a care home, visit people in their own homes, work in a nursery or help in a community group.

We keep the care training self-paced so it can fit around shifts, family and study. Each course page sets out the study time, what you will learn and what the course does not cover, so you can decide whether it suits your role before you apply. Your employer or manager remains the first place to ask which training your job requires, including any training that must be face-to-face. Our free care courses can sit alongside that training, and they do not replace it.

1. Choose a course. Read the course page so you know what it covers and what it does not.
2. Apply for a free place. Fill in the application form with your details.
3. We review your application. A member of our team checks every application by hand. This is why access is not instant.
4. Start learning if approved. We email you with details of how to begin. Study online at your own pace.
5. Take the online assessment. If you pass, you can receive a certificate of completion issued by CareCertified.

Our how to apply page goes through each step in more detail.

Our free online courses for care workers are designed for:

• care assistants, support workers, healthcare assistants and home carers
• new starters who want to learn the basics while they complete their employer's induction
• team leaders, supervisors and managers who need a refresher
• people in childcare, schools and voluntary organisations who need safeguarding knowledge
• anyone thinking about a career in care who wants to understand the standards first

If you are not sure which course suits you, our courses page explains the differences, for example between safeguarding levels 2 and 3.

When you pass the assessment, you can receive a certificate of completion issued by CareCertified. Our courses are CPD accredited.

A certificate of completion shows that you finished an online course. It is not a regulated qualification, and it does not prove that you are competent in the workplace. That is for your employer to assess.

We want to be straightforward about the limits of online learning:

• The Care Certificate course covers the knowledge part only. Workplace observation, competence assessment and sign-off are done by your employer.
• The paediatric first aid course is online theory only. It does not meet the requirements for early years first aid certificates, which involve face-to-face practical training.
• The moving and handling course covers objects and loads, not moving people, and does not replace practical training.
• Safeguarding courses are knowledge courses. They do not replace your employer's policies or your local safeguarding procedures.