Our Professional Nursing Committee helps us achieve our purpose as a Royal College, making decisions on professional issues affecting nursing. It is accountable to RCN Council. It has three main functions which are taken from our Royal Charter:

• Promote the science and art of nursing, as well as education and training
• Promote the advancement of nursing as a profession
• Promote the professional standing and interests of our members

Find out more about the role and remit of our Professional Nursing Committee in the terms of reference. You can also read a role descriptor for the role of committee member.

Updates from the Professional Nursing Committee 

Agenda

Key messages from Rachel Hollis, Professional Nursing Committee Chair, for members:

The Professional Nursing Committee met online on 5 June. We were delighted to be joined for the first time by our new student member, Sophie Du Plessis.

We were joined by Dr Kate Kirk; Associate Director of the Academy of Nursing Workforce who gave an update on the critical work being undertaken to lay robust foundations for the planned campaign for registered nurse:patient ratios. We recognised the complexity and magnitude of this workstream and were pleased to hear the progress being made whilst recognising that this is a long-term project. We talked about the necessary distinction to be made between ‘safety critical red lines’ – minimum registered nurse: patient ratios, beyond which there is an evidence base to say harm is caused to patients, and ‘gold standard’ guidelines or recommendations on staffing for safe and effective care.

We welcomed Professor Jane Ball’s excellent summary of the evidence that lower registered nurse staffing levels are associated with higher risks to patients and poorer quality care. This briefing has been abstract published on the RCN website and we commend it to members.

We discussed and agreed the importance of the narrative of this work, as we look to engage with the profession and senior nurse leaders at both the local and the national level. The importance of the language we use, and the narrative we tell was a thread that ran through our meeting.

Since we last met, the revised Nursing Workforce Standards have been published, with a ‘launch’ at Congress in Liverpool. Our revised Standards make explicit the fundamentals needed to underpin safe and effective care delivery. We agreed on the need to embed them through both a ‘bottom up’ approach, exemplified by our brilliant Standards Champions, but also through engaging with senior nurses and their organisations.

Now that we have published the RCN definition of a Nursing Support Worker and the level descriptors for assistive and supportive roles we agreed the importance of the next phase of work, developing standards and educational pathways.

We had robust discussions on the revision of the RCN’s position on RN substitution. We agreed that this position needs to be strengthened, to make it clear that in the light of the evidence that not having enough RNs leads to patient harm means that they should not be substituted with other health care professionals, or nursing support workers. We recognised that this harm is done by the practice of substitution. We agreed on the importance of our language being both strong in setting out our position, and inclusive.

We noted progress on the #ProtectNurse campaign with members of the campaign group, RCN staff and members continuing to work together. The RCN policy team remain in conversation with the Department of Health and Social Care to ensure the government follows through on its promise to protect the title nurse in law. We agreed that this was far from a ‘done deal’ and emphasised the need to ensure close communication and collaboration with the campaign team.

Half of the seats on PNC will be opening for election on 15th July (with terms of office starting on 1 January 2026). Those seats up for election this year are Scotland, Wales, South East, South West, West Midlands, Yorkshire and the Humber and the Nursing Support Worker and student seats. Once the nomination process is open, you will be able to see more information here. I am always happy to be contacted by members who might like to know more about the work of PNC: rachel.hollis@reps.rcn.org.uk

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Report of meeting

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Key messages from Rachel Hollis, Professional Nursing Committee Chair, for members:

Since the start of the year the Professional Nursing Committee has met three times. We held a workshop session in January, where we reviewed progress across our 2024 work plan, and considered the revision of the Nursing Workforce Standards. On the same day we held a joint session with the Students Committee, where we considered how we could work better together, locally in countries and regions, and nationally to better reflect the views of our student members.

In early February we had a joint workshop with our colleagues on the Trade Union Committee (TUC). We meet together twice a year and address shared areas of concern. On this occasion we received an overview of work underway on the campaign against corridor care which is of huge concern to members and has important implications from both the professional and trade union perspectives. We had an update on a cross-organisational framework which will bring together several workstreams to support Internationally Educated Nursing Staff, elements of which will be taken forward by each committee.

Our first formal PNC business meeting of the year was held online the next day, 6 February. We received the news that our student member on PNC, Alisha Brown, had unfortunately resigned from her role on the PNC. We thanked her for her brilliant contributions to our work, as well as her leadership as Chair of the Students Committee, and before that for her work as the student member of the Trade Union Committee. She has made a huge contribution to the College during her time as a student and we wish her well as a newly registered nurse in her demanding first post.

In a packed agenda we returned to the topic of support for Internationally Educated Nursing Staff and received the report of the findings and key recommendations of a survey of over 3,000 internationally educated members. The findings of this survey will be reported and support the motion passed at Congress 2024 for the RCN to lobby UK Government on the impact of immigration regulations for the international workforce. PNC agreed to the strengthening of several current policy positions and ongoing support.

We also received an update on the revision of the Humanitarian Crisis Framework, which was the subject of a motion proposed by PNC at Congress last year. At the same time, we received a compelling update from Marcus Wootton, Associate Director of the International Academy, on some of the work being led by the RCN to support nurses in areas of conflict and crisis.

Staffing for safe and effective care remains one of our principal workstreams. Within this there are three critical strands: the work on ending corridor care, the work on campaigning for nurse:patient ratios, and finally the review of the Nursing Workforce Standards.

We recognised the excellent work from the policy and comms teams in putting together the recent report on corridor care and its delivery which had such an impact through using members own words and testimonies. We discussed next steps in this campaign and the scope of the issues realised from care delivery in inappropriate settings. 

We were delighted to be joined by Dr Kate Kirk, the new Associate Director of the Nursing Workforce Academy, to update us on the programme of work underway to enable the RCN to lead the campaign for safety critical registered nurse:patient ratios.

Kate stayed with us as we discussed the draft revision of the Nursing Workforce Standards. The work is almost complete to update and strengthen the Standards. We considered some key issues and hope to approve the final draft later this month.

Following on from an excellent overview of the current legislative landscape from the Public Affairs team in our joint session with the TUC, PNC received a more detailed update on the Mental Health Bill. This was very useful. Whilst the proposals are positive there is anxiety amongst members that the increase in the threshold for detention under the Act, combined with the NHSE guidance on assertive engagement, following the recent and awful events in the community, will result in community mental health services coming under increasing and extreme pressure to safely manage significant risk in the community. It is hoped that these services fall within the scope of the proposed investment to support this transition. It is important for the RCN to ensure that the voice of nursing is heard in this debate. We also supported lobbying activity related to nurse staffing in mental health services.

We received an internal audit report on the implementation of the Forums and Networks Review, which has featured on our work plan for the last couple of years, with significant progress over the last year. This was recognised in the audit report, and we agreed on the importance of updating members on this work. We were delighted at the same time to receive the Forums Annual Report 2024 and recognised the vast amount of work done by the forums, as always. We agreed that this should be more widely celebrated and shared with members.

At the end of the meeting Lynn Woolsey, our acting Chief Nursing Officer, reflected on how much she values and appreciates the input and perspectives from all of PNC to shape the direction of travel in the professional work of the College.

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On 19 March the Professional Nursing Committee met at RCN HQ and online. The following day we were joined by our colleagues on the Trade Union Committee for our second joint meeting of the year to discuss key issues where it is critical for the professional and trade union functions of the RCN to come together.

Meeting first as PNC we received a wide-ranging update from RCN Chief Nurse Professor Nicola Ranger. The committee shared Nicola’s continued and increasing concern at the significant drop in applications to nursing degree programmes, alongside high attrition rates. This led to a discussion on the public understanding of the role of a nurse and perceptions of nursing as a career choice. We recognised that recent rhetoric which has focused on negative incidents involving nurses was damaging to this public perception and is likely to have played a part in young people not seeing nursing as a career of choice. Pay was also agreed to be a critical element in that career choice, as well as increasingly being cited as a factor by those intending to leave the profession. The committee recognised the need to celebrate the value of nursing, whilst recognising the appalling working conditions being endured by nursing staff. We were pleased to hear that this is the subject of live work between the nursing department and the communications and policy teams at the RCN.

The committee reviewed the most recent report on the workstreams arising from Congress 2023, including addressing the increased normalisation of corridor care in all its many manifestations. The placing of patients in inappropriate settings compromises their dignity and safety, and increases nursing workloads, which further impacts on patient safety. Listening events taking place over recent weeks are further refining the RCN position in calling for an end to these unacceptable practices.

Safe staffing remains our most critical workstream. Building on the outcomes from the international Safe Staffing Summit in December we looked ahead to a further summit, which took place the following week.  This summit brought together nurses with operational responsibilities for the nursing workforce to hear from some of the same experts in the field. It was an excellent day which continued the work towards gaining the support of the profession in the development of our position of establishing safety-critical registered nurse-to-patient ratios across health and social care. At the request of PNC (and others) most of the keynote talks from the December meeting are now available in full on this webpage. Former PNC member Professor Alison Leary’s recent William Rathbone lecture was also shown at the summit and received extremely positive feedback. Alison’s lecture is available on the QNI website.

At both PNC and the joint meeting with the TUC, Nicola Ranger presented an update on the RCN Institute of Nursing Excellence, and the progress to date on establishing the five academies which will make up the Institute. These are the academies of nursing practice, nursing leadership, nursing workforce, international nursing, and the activism academy. At PNC this generated further discussion about how we align the committee workplan to the development of matrix working across the college and the Institute. This is an exciting time, and as the meeting progressed, we recognised the way in which much of the work overseen by PNC is woven into plans for the Institute to strengthen the RCN as the Voice of Nursing.

PNC considered a paper from Jonathan Beebee, Professional Lead for Learning Disabilities, which set out the challenges faced by the speciality not only in terms of recruitment and training uptake but also in the perception of the role and relevance in today's world. The Committee considered some very stark data on the reduction of numbers of learning disability nurses, and shared examples of the complexity of the role, and how it has changed over time. We supported plans for a national summit on learning disability nursing, to be convened by the RCN, and look forward to a discussion on the Congress agenda in June, Redefining learning disability nursing.

We were delighted to be joined at PNC by Professor Bridie Kent, the Chair of the Forums Governance Group, and Paul McAleer, the new Chair of the Forum Chairs Committee (and Chair of the Nursing in Justice and Forensic Health Care Forum). They highlighted the huge amount of work the forums have achieved over the last year and the vital contribution they continue to make to the professional voice of the RCN. We were also updated on some of the changes in governance processes which we hope will be agreed by Council, to encourage and support member engagement and involvement. The forums will be promoted at Congress and a third World Café event is planned to achieve as much feedback and discussion as possible.

The current RCN position statement on nursing associates was reviewed and discussed in detail in the light of increased evidence of the substitution of registered nurses by registered nursing associates and continued concerns with regards to inappropriate role expansion. This discussion was taken forward into our meeting with the Trade Union Committee the following day, as it was recognised that this was an area where there were some key questions with regards to employment issues as well as professional concerns. It was agreed that we needed to strengthen our current position, and this is now going through the process of redrafting following insightful input from both committees.

A further issue was raised at PNC in relation to medical associate professionals, and the apparent inclusion of some registered nurses (such as surgical care practitioners) in commentary relating to these roles. During our two days of meetings a further position statement was drafted, discussed, and reviewed and has now been published.

Our joint session with the TUC provided the opportunity for discussion on topics of shared concern, notably our work on safe staffing, and the current consultation on a separate pay spine for nursing. This consultation has generated an impressive level of response from RCN members, and we discussed the draft of the RCN position which recognises that nursing staff working for the NHS are currently not well served by Agenda for Change. Whilst we recognised that a separate pay spine for nursing could bring significant benefits to the profession, there was also some caution with regards to potential risks to terms and conditions and other benefits of AfC. The RCN has now submitted its views to the consultation: A fresh start for nursing pay? RCN responds to government consultation

It is three years since publication of the RCN Nursing Workforce Standards. We are delighted to see how much traction they are gaining, and the many resources which have been developed to support their implementation. It is now time for the Standards to be reviewed and strengthened. In a workshop session with Lena Johnson, Professional Lead for Nursing Workforce, PNC began the review process, and recognised opportunities to align the standards to the work on safety critical registered nurse-to-patient ratios, to address skill mix within the nursing workforce, and the risks of registered nurse substitution, as well as being more specific with regards to the ‘uplift’ which should be applied to nurse staffing establishments. We look forward to continuing this work with Lena and colleagues in the nursing department, with input from our counterparts on the TUC and staff colleagues with regards to the employment components.

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Our first meeting of 2024 took place in London (and online) on Thursday 1 February. I welcomed our new Committee members, as well as thanking once more those Committee members who stepped down at the end of December. All members of the committee give their time voluntarily on behalf of the members they represent to ensure we are leading the College’s important work to advance and support the profession.

The Committee first discussed our terms of reference, and we will revisit them after some work internally later this quarter. I gave a Chair’s update to the Committee following our last meeting at the end of December and sought their feedback on the joint session we held on Wednesday 31 January with the Trade Union Committee. We work closely together on shared matters of interest, and all agreed that it was really positive for the committee members to meet together and build on this spirit of collaboration. We felt emboldened and hopeful from the session for the work we will progress together in the year ahead.

Our Chief Nurse, Nicola Ranger gave an update to the Committee on the consultation on the nursing pay spine. We believe that Agenda for Change has lost sight of our value - after 20 years, three quarters of our members are on the two lowest pay bands possible for registered professionals. Nurses are too often at the bottom of the pay and grading structure, without a clear route through. We want nursing staff, wherever they work, to be rewarded for their skills and knowledge while staying close to clinical care, and to patients. The Committee will be inputting into the RCN’s response to the government consultation.

The normalising of corridor care is also a key concern for the Committee, and we discussed how this is occurring across health and social care settings, not just in emergency or acute care but also in the community and in mental health. The College’s work, led by PNC, will continue to raise the alarm on this issue and the negative impacts on patients.

We reviewed the Committee’s work plan and risk register for the year and discussed how we will lead and monitor progress on these key areas of work for the College.

One of the most significant workstreams for the College and for PNC is staffing for safe and effective care. We discussed how staffing issues continue to be a key issue for our members and the outcomes from the international Safe Staffing Summit and the work already being undertaken to strive to achieve these. This will involve a range of work including evidenced-based statements on registered nurse:patient ratios across health and social care.

The Committee agreed that work will take place to set out a position statement to clarify our view on the role of registered nurses and registered nursing associates in maternity care. We discussed the continuing development of the RCN Professional Framework and work that has been delivered to date, including the Definition and Principles of Nursing and registered nurse substitution. We are looking forward to the imminent publication of the new definitions and standards for enhanced and consultant level practice, and the revised definition and standards of advanced level practice, which will be reflected in our contribution to the deliberations of the NMC with regards to possible regulation of advanced practice.

The Committee was updated on the public policy work happening to influence policies that impact on our members. The first item discussed was the Strike (minimum service levels) Act and the impact on our members’ freedom to strike. We also noted the work the organisation will do to influence during the General Election this year, and how we will be kept updated and involved. International recruitment is a key policy focus for the College, and we discussed the Westminster Hall debate on Wednesday 31 January led by Kwasi Kwarteng on international recruitment to health and social care and heard that our briefing was used by MPs to reference the experience of our internationally recruited members.

We had an update on the Institute for Nursing Excellence and the five academies which will make up the Institute. These are the academies of nursing practice, nursing leadership, nursing workforce, international nursing, and the academy for professional activism. It is an exciting time for the College and the Committee will be fully involved in leading this work.

The RCN Professional Lead for Research, Dr Ada Hui presented the new RCN research strategy – this strategy will ensure that RCN’s work, and that of the Institute and Academies, is underpinned by high-quality research to achieve the organisation’s strategic goals for the nursing workforce and will promote nursing leadership in research. The strategy has been developed alongside the Research Forum, and through engagement with a wide range of members. We congratulated Ada for the work, and suggested some final edits before the strategy progresses to publication, with a planned update for members at Congress.

Christine Callendar, RCN Head of Nursing Practice, gave an update on the implementation of the recommendations from our forums and networks review. Progress has been made on the way the forum steering committees can communicate with each other, and other work in progress includes updating our governance structures and training for forum steering committees. This is one of the workstreams where we have been concerned at delayed implementation, and so we were pleased to see the progress being made, whilst recognising that there is more to do to ensure the forums receive the right level of resource and support to sustain the significant contribution they make to the professional work of the college.

The Committee reviewed the mid-year update on Congress 2023 resolutions and confirmed the Committee will contribute to further updates for the Council report to Congress in June. New PNC leads were identified for some of the workstreams.

Our final agenda item for the day was an update on the Governance and Culture Joint Partnership board to take forward recommendations from recent reviews and reports. Most of the deliverables are on track. Members can keep up to date with our 'Transforming our Culture and Governance' page.

Our new and existing Committee members brought much to the discussions throughout the day and like me, are motivated for the year ahead. PNC members are committed to collaborating with colleagues from the nursing and policy staff teams, our Trade Union Committee counterparts, and with Council, to ensure the work we are doing achieves our aims for the benefit of our members.