What did the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) consult on?
The NMC's consulted on a range of proposed changes to pre-registration nursing and midwifery practice learning and education standards. This includes reducing programme hours for nursing by up to 1,000 hours; mandating a community practice placement; and extending the length of the midwifery programme from three to four years.
The NMC is the independent regulator for nurses and midwives in the UK, and nursing associates in England.
What are practice learning standards?
The NMC's practice learning standards set out how nursing and midwifery students learn in real-world settings. This covers issues such as supervision, assessment, support for students and the responsibilities of employers and education providers.
What are the current programme hours?
Nursing and midwifery programmes are currently required to be 4,600 hours in length, with a strict 50/50 ratio of theory (academic) to practice (placement).
What's the NMC proposing?
The NMC's proposing to reduce the overall programme hours for nursing to a minimum of 3,600 hours, which it says would enable more “flexible and focused routes into practice”.
It's also proposing to extend midwifery programmes by a year, while keeping the 4,600 hours requirement, which it says would support midwifery students to attain the breadth of experience necessary to meet the complex needs of women, babies and families.
Why's this happening?
This responds to long-standing challenges in nursing and midwifery education, including inconsistent student placement experiences. Leaving the European Union (EU) also gave the NMC more flexibility to set its own hours, rather than follow the EU-wide minimum.
Has the RCN responded to the consultation?
Yes, we have written a full response, and submitted our answers via the NMC’s online survey.
Our response draws on UK-wide RCN member engagement, including with experts such as RCN country leads and the RCN Education Forum, a member survey, and a literature review.Does the RCN support the NMC’s proposal to reduce the minimum nursing programme hours?
No. The RCN doesn't support the NMC’s proposal to reduce the minimum number of nursing programme hours from 4,600 to 3,600.
We’re concerned about the quality of placements, and the proposals do nothing to address that. We believe reducing the number of hours will just exacerbate the issue.
No credible evidence has been presented to prove that fewer hours would maintain or improve outcomes for students, registered nurses, or patients, and our members overall oppose the change unless it’s backed by better evidence and quality safeguards.
Our members have repeatedly highlighted concerns about the strength of the evidence too, and the risks of reform being shaped by financial pressures rather than education needs.
What could the consequences of this be?
Cutting training hours could backfire. Financial pressures mean many universities may simply deliver the new minimum rather than build on it, and there are fears placements could be shortened to ease pressure on services rather than improve education.
Reducing nursing hours while leaving nursing associate programme hours unchanged could also narrow the gap between the two roles, weakening recognition of the registered nurse role, and increasing the risk of nursing associates being used as substitutes for registered nurses.
In Northern Ireland, reducing nursing programme hours carries specific implications. This reduction could affect recognition of UK nursing qualifications in Ireland and across the EU/European Economic Area (EEA). Northern Ireland would be particularly affected because of its cross-border workforce and close links with the Republic of Ireland.
If UK education requirements fall below EU standards, nurses may no longer benefit from automatic recognition of their qualifications and could face additional assessments or tests to practise abroad. Given the potential impact on workforce mobility and professional recognition, the NMC should publish a full assessment before making any changes.
Could current nursing students be affected by the proposed changes?
No. Only future nursing students could be affected if the changes go ahead.
The NMC has stated if the changes are agreed by their council, there will be a transition period of at least two years, and the consultation doesn't state that existing students would be moved onto the new requirements.
What’s the RCN calling for instead?
Rather than simply opposing the change, we're also calling for a mandatory preceptorship period for every newly registered nurse, across all four UK nations.
A preceptorship is a structured period of support after registration, including a named preceptor, proper training and protected time, that helps new nurses safely transition from student to independent practice.
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At the moment, despite the NMC recommending it, employers aren't required to offer this. England has already committed to a national preceptorship scheme; we want to see this made mandatory and rolled out consistently across the UK.
We're also calling for stronger quality assurance right across nursing education, including independent checks on universities and placements (rather than relying on self-assessment), training for staff who supervise and assess students, and clearer national standards for what a good placement looks like.
We're questioning why quality concerns in midwifery are being addressed by adding a year, while in nursing concerns are being addressed by cutting hours
What’s the proposed cap to simulated practice learning?
Simulated practice learning means students learn and practice clinical skills in a realistic but controlled environment rather than with real patients, helping them safely build confidence, make mistakes and develop skills before caring for real patients.
If nursing programme hours are reduced, the NMC is proposing that simulation could make up no more than 25% of practice learning hours.
We think that's the wrong direction: with fewer hours overall, simulation should make up less than 25% of practice time, not up to 25%, to protect real-world exposure. We'd also like stronger quality checks, as our research shows students' experiences of simulated learning varies significantly between universities.
What are community learning placements, and what does the consultation say about them?
In a community placement nursing students are placed with professionals like district nurses, health visitors, or community mental health teams, rather than in hospitals.
The NMC is proposing all nursing students should have at least one community practice learning placement. We agree, but only once the NMC provides a clear definition of what counts as a community placement, sets quality standards for placement providers, and works with all four UK governments on a credible plan to scale up capacity.
What does the NMC propose around equity, diversity and inclusion, and what does the RCN think?
The NMC wants to strengthen anti-racism, bias awareness, cultural safety and respect requirements across nursing and midwifery education. We agree, but this needs to translate into real protection for students, many of whom tell us they've experienced racism or other forms of discrimination on placement.
This can't be a paper exercise: it needs to be embedded in everyday teaching, supervision, assessment and complaints handling, with a measurable impact for students.
We also want the NMC to commit to promoting and embedding practical tools that support consideration of reasonable adjustments in practice settings, such as the RCN's own Health Ability Passport.
What's the NMC proposing for midwifery programmes?
The NMC's proposing to extend pre-registration midwifery programmes from three to four years, while retaining the existing 4,600-hour programme requirement.
This proposal aims to address challenges meeting the current requirement for students to be involved in 40 births, and to respond to concerns raised through recent maternity inquiries, including the recent Ockenden Review.
However, we're questioning why the NMC hasn't explained why quality concerns in midwifery are being addressed by adding a year, while quality concerns in nursing are being addressed by cutting hours.
These contrasting approaches risk creating inequity between nursing and midwifery, and sending an unintended message that nursing requires less preparation.
This could lead to the devaluation of nursing education and practice.
What happens next?
The consultation closed 23 July 2026. The NMC will now review all responses, including ours, before deciding whether to take these proposals forward – there's no confirmed timeline yet.
We'll keep members updated and will keep pressing the NMC on the concerns in our response – including our call for a mandatory preceptorship year, and for any changes to be backed by proper evidence and quality safeguards.
Find out more
Read our submission in full.
