Nurse training places slashed, warns RCN Eastern

Published: 27 November 2012

A nurses’ leader has warned that nurse training places in the East of England have been slashed by 14 per cent over the past two years.

The cuts to training places come as the nursing profession faces an ageing workforce rapidly moving towards retirement age. The UK has more than 200,000 registered nurses who are over the age of 50 and due to retire over the course of the next decade.   

Figures obtained from NHS Midlands and East by the Nursing Times show that nurse training places have been cut at a time when places for medical students have been increasing.

2012-13 (Planned)  
Profession Group                           NHS Midlands and East  % Change from 2010-11
Nursing                                                5,026                                         -14%
Midwifery                                              740                                            -1%
Health Visitors/School Nurses              973                                          +214%
Allied Health Professionals                 1,754                                         -12%
Healthcare Scientists                            76                                            -68%
Technicians                                          521                                           -14%
Other/ New Roles                                485                                            -4%
Total                                                 9,575                                          -6.40%

2012-13 (Planned)                                                                    % Change from 2010-11
Postgrad Medical/Dental                11,935                                           +1.60%
Undergrad Medical/Dental               5,352                                           +2.40%

RCN Eastern regional director Karen Webb said: “It’s well known that East Anglia has an ageing population and that includes the nurses who tend to our sick. A third of nurses in our region are due to retire within a few years.

“We very much welcome the extra investment in health visitors and school nurses but that seems to be the exception to the rule.  The NHS has a huge challenge ahead of it in terms of not only delivering financial savings but also meeting the needs of a growing elderly population.

“The numbers of doctors in training has increased but nurse training has been cut back at a time when thousands of nurses are nearing retirement and that could be a recipe for disaster. From April next year, a new body, Health Education England and the regional Local Education and Training Boards (LETBs), will take on responsibility for education and training for the NHS and we would ask that they carefully consider what the future needs of nursing will be.”

The Royal College of Nursing represents more than 36,000 nurses across the Eastern region; covering Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire.

The RCN’s Frontline First campaign closely monitors the effects of measures being taken across the NHS to help meet the efficiency savings required and will identify trends that directly impact on the quality of care being delivered.