RCN welcomes additional Band 5 nursing graduate posts across NHS Wales but highlights the need for sustainable workforce planning and support for all graduating nurses.

Responding to Health Education and Improvement Wales (HEIW)'s statement of 22 July, RCN Wales Executive Director Nicola Williams, said:

"RCN Wales very much welcomes these additional 100 Band 5 nursing graduate posts that have been identified since discussions began, and recognises the collaborative efforts that have been made across NHS Wales to create more opportunities for newly registered nurses. Each graduate nurse is very much valued and needed to support our population and patients here in Wales. We cannot afford to lose any graduate from Wales or the profession. Every graduate represents a valuable investment in the future of our health service, and every effort must continue to ensure they can begin their careers in Wales.

"However, there still remains a shortfall of posts for nurses due to graduate this year, whilst members continue to tell us about significant nursing workforce shortages and use of bank and agency nurses daily across NHS Wales. Just this morning, I was in a number of clinical areas where the staff on duty were extremely distressed, working in very high clinical risk with insufficient staff to keep them or their patients safe, which was described as a daily occurrence. It is unacceptable that Welsh patients and staff are experiencing this whilst we are told there is not a job for each nurse due to graduate very soon.

“Furthermore, this announcement cannot be the end of the conversation. As well as finding posts for the remaining graduates, the Welsh government, HEIW and NHS employers must now put in place meaningful long-term workforce plans so that this situation is not repeated for the 2027 or any future graduating cohorts.

“Nursing students deserve certainty that after years of study and public investment, there will be a nursing post waiting for them and our patients and population deserve to have safe and high quality care."

ENDS

 

 

Note to editors

The statement from HEIW can be found online here.

The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) is the voice of nursing across the UK, including around 35,000 members in Wales. The RCN promotes the interests of nursing and patients on a wide range of issues and helps shape health care policy.

For more information, contact the RCN Wales communications and media team on 02920 680 769 or mediawales@rcn.org.uk

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