Nursing (Training)

– in the Scottish Parliament at on 14 December 2017.

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Photo of Clare Haughey Clare Haughey Scottish National Party

3. I refer members to my entry in the register of interests as a registered mental health nurse who holds an honorary contract with NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to attract more people to train as nurses. (S5O-01576)

Photo of Shona Robison Shona Robison Scottish National Party

Last week, the chief nursing officer for Scotland published a report on widening participation in nursing and midwifery education and careers. The report recommends a range of measures to attract people into nursing, including a national campaign to recruit a more diverse workforce, tackle negative stereotypes and provide more flexible routes into education. The report was launched in the same week that we saw the highest ever number of acceptances to nursing and midwifery courses at our universities. The actions set out will allow us to build on that, maximising the number of opportunities available and the number of people who can benefit from them.

Photo of Clare Haughey Clare Haughey Scottish National Party

Last year, the United Kingdom Government scrapped bursaries for student nurses and introduced fees. Since then there has been an 18 per cent reduction in the number of applications from nursing students. Both the Royal College of Nursing and the president of Universities UK attribute that, in part, to the withdrawal of bursary funding. In contrast, recent Universities and Colleges Admissions Service statistics show an increase of 8 per cent in the number of students enrolling at Scottish universities to train as nurses. Can the cabinet secretary reassure people in Scotland who want to train as nurses that this Government will continue to support them in this essential profession and will not withdraw bursary funding?

Photo of Shona Robison Shona Robison Scottish National Party

I absolutely can. The UCAS statistics tell a very interesting story of the position here in Scotland compared with that south of the border. We continue to protect the non-means-tested non-repayable nursing and midwifery student bursary and, of course, free tuition. That is in stark contrast to the UK Government, which has scrapped both in England, resulting in the dire consequences that Clare Haughey described.

We have also increased support for students most in need or facing financial hardship, and we will continue to review the support package to ensure that nursing and midwifery students receive the support that they need. In particular, we will consider whether additional support is needed for students in remote or rural areas or from low-income households.