Number of student nurses falls by more than a third: RCN wants student loan forgiveness scheme for nurses

LONDON October 29: The number of new nursing students has fallen by up to 40 per cent in part of England, threatening NHS rescue plans, analysis shows. The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) warned the number of people studying to become nurses has collapsed in every region between 2020 and 2023.

It said large swathes of the country are being left behind by a failing education system and called for better financial incentives for prospective students.

The data, from the university admissions service UCAS, revealed that in the North East – the hardest-hit region – acceptances on to pre-registration nursing courses have plummeted by 40 per cent.

How much do nurses get paid?
In England, nurse pay varies depending on experience, education, location, and the type of nursing. Here are some general salary ranges

Newly qualified nurses: Start at Band 5 on the Agenda for Change pay band, with a salary of around £29,969 per year.

Band 6 nurses: With more than five years’ experience, these nurses can earn between £37,339 and £44,962.

Band 7 nurses: With a master’s degree and further training, these nurses can earn between £46,148 and £52,809.

Band 8 nurses: Modern matrons and chief nurses can earn between £53,954 and £101,677.

Band 9 nurses: Nursing consultants can earn between £105,385 and £121,271.

Nurses can also earn more for working overtime, out-of-hours, or on weekends and bank holidays. Nurses who work in areas with high living costs, like London, may also earn more. Nurses can work in the NHS or in the private sector and pay can vary.

Fresh demands from RCN

The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has made fresh demands for a student loan forgiveness scheme for nurses, as new data suggests course acceptances have fallen by almost half in some parts of England.

The college has analysed regional figures from the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) between 2020 and 2023 and found that the number of people studying to be a nurse had dropped in every area of the country.

Nationally, the data showed that there had been a 19% decrease in the number of acceptances on to pre-registration nursing courses between the 2020-21 (24,950) and 2023-24 (20,160) academic years.

However, in some areas numbers had fallen even harder.

The North East of England saw a 40% decrease in course acceptances in the three-year period, falling from 1,580 to 945. This was the only English region to fall below 1,000 acceptances in the 2023-24 academic year.

Elsewhere, the South West and Yorkshire and Humberside both saw falls of 25%, while in the East of England, acceptances also more sharply than the national average, with a 22% decrease.

RCN said these regions were likely to, in the coming years, see a decrease in the number of nurses available to work because many go on to work in the region where they study.

Every other region also saw a reduction in acceptances: the South East by 19%, North West by 18%, East Midlands by 15%, West Midlands by 14% and London by 12%.

The union warned that this trend could have a significant impact on the nursing workforce in the coming years, and reiterated calls for reforms to the finances involved with studying a nursing degree.

Specifically, it called for the implementation of a scheme which forgives student loans for anyone who works in the NHS for a certain period of time following graduation and registration.

RCN general secretary and chief executive Professor Nicola Ranger said “huge debt” and a “lack of financial support” were driving the decreases in the number of students entering pre-registration courses.

“Nursing is an incredible career, but to fix a broken NHS, the government must fix a broken nurse education model,” she said.

“Across the NHS alone there are tens of thousands of vacancies and demand for services continues to rise. We desperately need more people to join the profession, but the reality is nursing numbers are going in the wrong direction.”

Professor Ranger said that the government must make nursing “an attractive career” if it wanted to boost numbers and achieve its aim of fixing and modernising the NHS.

Caroline Waterfield, director of development and employment at NHS Employers, said the figures suggested a “much starker” issue for the future of the NHS workforce than previously thought.

She said: “This is a problem that we cannot afford to ignore.

“History shows us that whenever we have previously had seismic drops in overall training numbers from one year to the next – that are not linked to changes in service planning and delivery – this comes back to bite the sector in three to five year’s time and is not easily remedied.”

However, she noted that the apprenticeship route had helped to boost nurse training numbers in “many parts of the UK”.

“Both the university courses and nurse degree apprenticeship training are needed to ensure we have the right number of professionals to deliver care into the future,” said Ms Waterfield.

“The NHS is facing rising demand and it is vital we have the workforce needed to address this.”