RCN West Midlands
Make the most of your membership
If you are an RCN member in the West Midlands, you can make more of your membership by getting involved in the activities of your local RCN branch.
Your RCN membership card will display the name of the local branch to which you are affiliated. Your branch is made up of all the RCN members in your area and is administered by fellow members who perform their organising roles voluntarily.
Many of the branches in the West Midlands hold regular meetings for members to discuss issues of interest and concern. Many also organise free events and activities for you and your fellow members (and even non-members who are willing to become members) to promote the development of your knowledge and skills as a registered nurse, health care assistant or nursing student.
Getting involved with your branch may also mean that you are nominated to attend RCN Congress as a funded delegate and vote on behalf of all the members in your area.
You can find out more about the activities organised by your local branch by visiting the Events page or by visiting the branch page for your area. The branches are:
- North Staffordshire
- South Staffordshire
- South Birmingham
- Birmingham West and Sandwell
- East and North Birmingham and Solihull
- Black Country
- Coventry and Warwickshire
- Shropshire
- Worcestershire
- Herefordshire
RCN West Midlands in the news
The RCN speaks up for members and nursing in the media when their interests are threatened by local and national reforms to healthcare services or workforce changes. Some of the recent coverage in the regional media is listed below:
- RCN concerns over hospital jobs squeeze, Stoke Sentinel July 2011
- Royal Wedding bonus refused for Coventry and Warwickshire hospital staff, Coventry Telegraph April 2011
- Union warn over changes to George Elliot Hospital unit Coventry Telegraph, March 2011
- 80 jobs axed as savings begin Coventry Telegraph, January 2011
- More than 700 jobs under threat in cutbacks Birmingham Mail, December 2010
- RCN report prompts questions from MP on NHS jobs Shropshire Star, November 2010
- Funding increase fails to allay concerns at NHS Birmingham Post, October 2010
- Fears for nursing jobs as helpline scrapped The Sentinel, Stoke on Trent, September 2010
- Midlands Hospitals being forced to save millions Birmingham Mail, August 2010
- Birmingham nurses in uproar over pay cut plans Birmingham Mail, July 2010.
Our services
The representation and professional support services provided by the West Midlands region of the Royal College of Nursing are organised into three geographical patches - West Midlands North (Staffordshire and the Black Country), West Midlands Central (the Birmingham conurbation) and West Midlands South (Coventry, Warwickshire, Worcestershire, Herefordshire and Shropshire).
Each patch has a team headed by an RCN officer. These teams represent members as well as support branches, provide training and facilitate activists in representing members.
We have 10 branches in the region and each branch is represented by an elected delegate on the RCN's West Midlands Regional Board.
Contact us
RCN West Midlands Regional Office
Lyndon House
58-62 Hagley Road
Edgbaston
Birmingham
B16 8PE.
Telephone: 0345 772 6100 (charged as a local rate call)
Email: westmidlands.region@rcn.org.uk.
Contacting us by telephone
From 31 October 2011, all calls to the West Midlands regional office will automatically go through to advisers at RCN Direct, who are the first point of contact for members' queries and cases. Calls are charged at local rates.
Every member whose case is referred to the regional office by RCN Direct will then receive a direct contact number for the team dealing with their case.
This system enables the RCN to provide a more efficient service to members who call the RCN for assistance. RCN Direct resolves 95 per cent of members' queries at first contact without the need to refer the member to the regional office.
Emails are received direct by the West Midlands regional office via the email address above.