SCQF Level 7: Professional Certificate in Therapeutic Parenting in Residential Childcare (TPRCC)
SCQF Level 7: Professional Certificate in TPRCC
TPRCC is an SCQF Level 7 professional qualification developed specifically for residential childcare. Developed from ISM Psychological Services’ work with children, young people and residential childcare organisations, TPRCC is a new professional qualification designed specifically for the residential childcare workforce. Our ambition is to help practitioners move beyond knowing about trauma and attachment towards confidently applying psychological understanding within everyday relationships and practice. It aims to strengthen the adults who care for children and evaluate whether investment in practitioners can support better practice, workforce stability and relational safety for children and young people.
We will pilot the first cohort of this qualification starting October 2026 and run for eight months encompassing 10 SCQF Units. Teaching will take place every four weeks in our Bathgate office and assessment methods include academic essays, reflective practice, completion of your river of life, poster on the pillars of therapeutic parenting and workshops.
Through our pilot, we aim to achieve:
- Move trauma, attachment, co-regulation and child-development theory into everyday residential childcare practice.
- Develop practitioners who can understand what may sit beneath behaviour and respond in ways that promote safety, connection and development.
- Recognise residential childcare as complex professional work requiring knowledge, judgement, reflection and skilled relational practice.
- The pilot will include pre- and post-programme evaluation. We will collate qualitative and quantitative data on knowledge and confidence, trauma-informed attitudes, work engagement, compassion satisfaction, compassion fatigue, professional pride, application to practice and workforce engagement/retention.
- Explore whether investment in practitioners can contribute to workforce stability and retention, creating greater relational consistency for children and young people.
- Map the pilot qualification against relevant National Occupational Standards (NOS) and build evidence for its potential future role as a suitable qualification pathway for residential childcare workers