Press Releases
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30/07/2026
Press Release
Nursing staff 'at sharp end' of climate change as extreme heat deaths hit record levels, says Royal College of Nursing
Executive Director of RCN England Patricia Marquis, said: “Climate change is a public health emergency that is getting worse in front of our eyes. It requires urgent action from governments, including to improve NHS and care facilities so that they are safe to work and be cared for in"
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30/07/2026
Press Release
Royal College of Nursing warns against proposed cuts to practice learning hours for nursing students
RCN Chief Nursing Officer, Professor Lynn Woolsey said: "Nurse education is already in the grips of a crisis with courses at risk of closure and nurse educators facing redundancy. It makes it more important than ever for the regulator to protect the quality of learning, the experience of students and, ultimately, patient care.”
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30/07/2026
Press Release
Nursing is a highly skilled, safety-critical profession and it is essential to patient safety that our title is protected, says Royal College of Nursing
RCN Chief Nursing Officer Professor Lynn Woolsey, said: “Patients and their families deserve to trust that when they are told they are being treated by a nurse, it is a registered nurse providing their care."
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29/07/2026
Press Release
Put nurse-led care at the core of a new national care service, says Royal College of Nursing
RCN General Secretary and Chief Executive Professor Nicola Ranger said: "It's refreshing to hear a Prime Minister so directly address poor pay in social care, which remains one of the biggest barriers to recruiting and retaining skilled staff. The goal now must be making social care an employer of choice, on a par with the NHS, with people able to move between services without risking a cut in their pay."
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28/07/2026
Press Release
All parties have a 'moral responsibility' to get behind social care reform, says Royal College of Nursing
RCN General Secretary and Chief Executive, Professor Nicola Ranger, said: “A new model with registered nurse-led care at its core will be transformative in delivering high quality, person-centred treatment and support, while reducing the pressure on the NHS."
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26/07/2026
Press Release
PM right to prioritise social care, but 'devil will be in the detail', says Royal College of Nursing
RCN General Secretary and Chief Executive, Professor Nicola Ranger, said: "For decades now, politicians have promised the world on adult social care and delivered very little, leaving many vulnerable people and their families without adequate care and support. The nursing profession will be encouraged by the government's attempts to finally grasp the nettle and the RCN is ready to support them to get this right."
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22/07/2026
Press Release
Nursing staff working in crumbling hospitals will not be surprised by these findings, says Royal College of Nursing
RCN Chief Nursing Officer Professor Lynn Woolsey, said: "Any new government that hopes to turn things around cannot shirk the big issues, including fixing the staffing crisis, eradicating corridor care and reforming social care."
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21/07/2026
Press Release
Top of Yvette Cooper’s agenda must be delivering nursing pay reform that has been neglected for decades, says Royal College of Nursing
RCN General Secretary and Chief Executive, Professor Nicola Ranger, said: “Nursing staff see every day how patients are being failed and they’re hungry for change, standing ready with the solutions to help deliver it. Central to the new secretary of state's success will be tackling a workforce crisis caused by sustained underinvestment."
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20/07/2026
Press Release
Back nursing staff and they will back you, Royal College of Nursing leader tells new Prime Minister
Delivering good growth in every postcode requires good health in every postcode and that means wasting no time in tackling the nursing workforce crisis, said Professor Nicola Ranger
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16/07/2026
Press Release
‘Government must ensure there is sufficient and sustainable funding for adult social care to support meaningful negotiations’, says Royal College of Nursing
RCN Associate Director of Employment Relations Brian Morton, said: "The setting up of this new body and the current review by Baroness Casey must be part of urgent and sustained action to support and grow the workforce, which has tens of thousands of vacant posts and has seen a decline in the number of registered nurses, who are so crucial to delivering safe and effective care to people with complex needs.”
Page last updated - 02/06/2026
