It’s been just over a month since RCN Congress 2026, since members from across the UK were together, debating the big issues facing nursing. A lot has happened since then, not least the resignation of the Prime Minister this week but let us not forget what we discussed at Congress and how we will move the nursing profession forward. It was truly inspiring to see the power of our member's ideas, energy and professionalism at Congress. No matter whoever becomes the new occupant of No10, we will continue with our campaigns for justice for the nursing profession. I am hoping to see that the MP who becomes the Prime Minister prioritises nursing and health care in the country at the top of their agenda.

In my speech at the RCN Congress opening ceremony, we celebrated the power of collective action. In workplaces across the UK, you have been making the voice of nursing heard. Standing up for yourselves, and your profession, and your patients.

And one most important of the ways that collective action has turned into tangible results is through the Westminster government announcement for NHS staff in England in February. The most significant investment in nursing career progression in recent history; it shows that we can make change happen.

And to continue to build up and advance our profession - we need to get better at knowing and describing our own worth.  We need to be able to articulate the safety critical role of nursing, and why that's important to patient care. 

If you’re passionate about the skills, knowledge and experience of nursing, please consider becoming one of our new Job Evaluation Representatives. You can be on the front line of change in your workplace to help your colleagues navigate upcoming job evaluations where you work. To find out more about the role, book onto one of our upcoming webinars and get involved to make change happen.

At the end of May, I visited the Chinese Nursing Association National Conference on Innovation and Reform in Nursing Management. It was a privilege to share how the RCN’s work is helping to advance patient safety through compassionate leadership in nursing across the UK, with an audience of more than 2,000 nursing staff in Hangzhou, from all parts of China.

It was a timely reminder of how respected UK nursing is on the global stage – I was proud of how the world holds our nursing workforce in such high regard. Something that shone through was that we have shared values with nurses and health care support workers all across the globe caring for patients in all kinds of practice settings. We have ambition to learn and excel, as part of a global community of nursing. It was also evident that many of the issues and problems we face in the UK, such as staffing, investment into nursing and funding in higher education, are also issues facing other countries too.

Last week we made recommendations to improve the future of learning disability nursing in Safety, Equity and Expertise: A UK Review of Learning Disability Nursing. We’re recommending that learning disability nursing must be recognised by health leaders as the safety-critical profession it is, and workforce planning must reflect their value and importance to individuals across society.

People with learning disabilities continue to experience some of the widest health inequalities in the UK – but our review showed the number of learning disability nurses has fallen by a third – while those choosing to study the specialism across the UK collapsed to fewer than 500 students in 2025. People with learning disabilities deserve better and this important work must inform change at a national level. 

I was deeply concerned by reports of nursing staff being prevented from getting to work and feeling unsafe travelling home after their shifts in Northern Ireland, following the recent outbreaks of violence. Racism has no place in our society, and these attacks will have a detrimental impact upon many of our global majority colleagues who are working hard across all health care facilities in Northern Ireland. 

I am fully confident that violence driven by hatred and divisive politics will eventually fail. But in the meantime, it is having a very real and divisive impact in our society and it’s crucial that we collectively stand up and speak out. I reject violence not because I fear becoming a victim of it, but because it is my civic duty, the one I owe to my fellow citizens, to our children and to the future.

Last week we welcomed the publication of the Public Inquiry report into Muckamore Abbey Hospital. It is a hugely important moment for patients, families and staff who have been waiting a long time for the findings of this inquiry. The RCN called for a full public inquiry into what happened at Muckamore back in 2019, and there are a number of recommendations outlined in the report which we will be analysing in detail. We also acknowledge that the Ockenden Review may have an impact on our members. If any of our members are affected, they can get in touch with the RCN.

And finally, as the latest heatwave to hit the UK continues, I hope many of you have had the chance to enjoy some of the weather. But I also know that for nursing staff, keeping hydrated while at work can bring another challenge to already busy days. You can read our advice on keeping hydrated at work here. Employers also have a duty of care to keep you safe in hot weather. So please make sure to read our advice on working in the heat here.