With publication of the NHS Long Term Workforce Plan today, NHS Gloucestershire and University of Gloucestershire have been highlighting the success of their Nursing Associates programme in the county.

Patients receiving care in some GP surgeries and hospital services are already benefitting from the relatively new role which allows people interested in working in health care to train on the job and offers a gateway to a career in nursing. Nursing Associates work in different healthcare settings and contribute to core nursing tasks.

Unlike students studying for a nursing degree, Trainee Nurse Associates are given on the job training from the off, working on wards and in healthcare placements. It’s a stand-alone role that also provides a progression route into graduate level nursing.

Gloucestershire is also home to one of the approved centres for training, with University of Gloucestershire working alongside the NHS in the county to help students through the course.

Tracey Cox, Director of People, Culture and Engagement at NHS Gloucestershire, said:

“We were one of the first counties to explore the Nursing Associates programme and the benefits are clear to see. Not only do the students get on the job training and frontline experience but our NHS teams are being enriched by the new roles.

“We have many Nursing Associates graduates working across our hospitals, primary care teams and other healthcare settings and it’s great to see so many choosing to continue their studies and set themselves on the path to a career in healthcare.”

Nick Oxlade, Strategic Lead for Partnerships and Projects at University of Gloucestershire’s School of Health and Social Care, has been working alongside the NHS in Gloucestershire to deliver the programme. He said:

“University of Gloucestershire is extremely proud to have been delivering the Nursing Associate Apprenticeship programme since 2017.

“We currently have over 120 Trainee Nursing Associates on the programme, with an additional 50 students also topping up from a nursing associate to Adult Nurse route.

“We have worked closely with local NHS partners to develop and deliver multiple Health and Social care programmes and to collaboratively ensure the success of these programme in practice.

“University of Gloucestershire currently has around 2,000 students across all Health and Social Care programmes and have proudly graduated 100’s of additional registered professionals in recent years to support the NHS workforce.

“We look forward to continuing to expand trainee numbers within the local area to deliver the NHS workforce of the future.”

Gloucestershire Primary Care Training Hub has worked to integrate Trainee Nursing Associates and Nursing Associates into primary care (GP practice) roles in the county.

Hannah Gannon, Practice Education Facilitator, at the Hub, said the new roles are bringing clear benefits. She said:

“The Practices who have employed the Trainee Nursing Associates and Nursing Associates highly valued the roles and the new skills which have brought from their training. They are highly regarded members of the nursing team and bridge the gap between the Health Care Assistant role and registered Nurse.

“It has been wonderful to see a cohort go through their training and the cohort are now awaiting their registrations to work as Nursing Associates.

“Some of the ‘soon to be registered’ Nursing Associates are in the process of enrolling onto the next step course for the Registered Nursing Degree Apprenticeship, where they will ‘top-up’ their skills and in two years’ time, gain their full Nursing degree to work as registered Nurses. Some of the Nursing Associates are also registered to complete their cytology training.”

Sarah Rogers, Lead Nurse for Gloucestershire Primary Care Training Hub, is a great advocate of the scheme which is helping the NHS local recruit and retain staff. She said:

“Going straight in to do day to day nursing is great for them. They are the people who we want to stay in nursing, they are the ones already based and rooted here and they can see how nursing works.”

Case study one: Andrea Corno

Andrea Corno works as an Infection Prevention Associate Practitioner at NHS Gloucestershire, having completed a Nursing Associates course. She was finishing her A-levels and was interested in working in healthcare when a careers advisor mentioned the Nursing Associates pathway. She said:

“I thought the course would allow me more choice. It was over two years and I started in September 2020, so it was slightly strange due to COVID, but I learned so much.

“It is not like a degree, it gives you a broader understanding of what you can do in your career.”

Andrea’s first placement was on a Stroke Ward, right at the beginning of her training, she said:

“It was quite heavy for a first placement, especially during COVID, and there was a lot to take in, but thankfully I had a mentor who taught me everything, even how to make the beds. It gave me a picture of how everything works.”

For Andrea the Nursing Associates course had helped her get her first professional role in healthcare, working in infection control for NHS Gloucestershire, but it has also helped her realise she wants to continue her training to develop her skills. In September, she is heading back to university to continue her studies.

 

Case study two: Donna Green

Donna Green has already clocked up 18 years working in primary care, but this summer marks her first year as a Nursing Associate. After starting out as a Health Care Assistant she applied to join the course to advance her career and develop her skills further. She said:

“It is great because you can continue to work while you qualify. I heard about the course and realised I needed my Maths and English to apply, so I worked to get that through evening school and then funding came through to apply through the Primary Care Network.

“It has been full on, one day a week in University, protected study time and juggling work and family life.”

As Donna completes her first year on the course she said the support from her colleagues at Prestbury Park Surgery in Cheltenham has helped spur her on. She has balanced studying and working in the surgery and is looking forward to putting her new skills to the test.

Shadowing colleagues in clinics and being part of the daily life of the surgery has been an invaluable part of her learning.

Notes to Editors

Following the success of the Nursing Associate apprenticeship, University of Gloucestershire has developed and is delivering the following Health and Social Care programmes; Adult Nursing, Mental Health Nursing, Learning Disability Nursing, Paramedic Science, Operating Department Practice, Physiotherapy, Occupational therapy, Diagnostic Radiography, Healthcare Science, Social Work, as well as Certificates in higher education in; Health and Social care, and Children, young people and Families.