Explore our support and guidance welcoming nursing students, internationally educated nurses and nurses returning to the workforce.
The resources aim to give you the tools to provide great opportunities for learning and development as well as a smooth transition into your workplace.
Before nurses and nursing associates can register with the Nursing and Midwifery Council, they must either complete an academic education programme or be able to demonstrate their competence if they have previously completed a nursing programme in the UK or abroad.
Learn more and view the resources for the relevent topics:
A student nurse or nursing associate will experience a range of placements as part of their academic programme. Social care offers a fantastic opportunity for learning and can support development of nursing professions in person-centred practice and professional autonomy.
Our resources develop understanding of nursing placements within social care settings, and may be particularly relevant to employers, students and the education provider.
New guidance: Developing nursing placement opportunities in social care
Social care nursing placements offer a wealth of opportunities with employers and practice learning partners playing a key role in supporting students to reach their full potential in developing their knowledge and skills within the learning environment.
For employers and those considering hosting students to help them navigate the process of linking in with higher education institutions and highlights the benefits that there are for employers in hosting students.
PDF - 1,441 KB
Designed to help employers to understand the process of providing a safe and suitable learning environment for students and the various routes that are available to students into the nursing profession.
An open letter to Higher Education Institutions
From Ed Hughes, CEO, Council of Deans of Health and Oonagh Smyth, CEO, Skills for Care.
To support this new guidance Skills for Care and the Council of Deans of Health have written an open letter to Higher Education Institutes highlighting the value of social care nursing placements and the social care learning environment.
Read the open letter
Developing nursing placements in social care
We explore how key stakeholders have come together to develop nursing placements and share the value of hosting nursing placements in social care for the sector and the nursing profession.
Guide: How to make the most of student nurse placements in social care settings
This guide introduces what can be offered within social care placement settings. The guide has 10 examples which have been mapped to the future nurse standards of proficiency. This guide will cover the following:
- what social care is – diversity of settings and offer
- the ethos of social care, the learning which is available to healthcare and nursing students
- what a person who needs care and support wants nurses to know about them and the environment,
- how the standards of proficiency for registered nurses map to different settings and experiences
- the richness of learning on offer.
PDF - 1.89Mb
Supporting the understanding of nursing placements within social care. This guide is aimed at social care employers, student nurses and higher education providers.
Indemnity insurance guidance
Skills for Care in consultation with Nursing and Midwifery Council, Royal College of Nursing, Queens Nursing Institute and Registered Nursing Home Association have developed the following guidance to support and clarify social care practice experience opportunities within the sector.
PDF - 119KB
Guidance indemnity insurance and clinical negligence cover for nursing placements in social care.
Supporting information from employers (SIfE)
International nurses come to the UK with exceptional skills and experience and with the right support can join the Nursing and Midwifery Council to become a registered nurse in the UK.
We also know from our workforce data there are large numbers of nurses working in the sector who have been unable to register with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) due to English language requirements.
In 2023 the NMC held a consultation and made changes to their English language requirements and introduced the Supporting Information from Employers route to registration.
Internationally recruited nurses
Hear from an employer and nurse about their recruitment experience as well as the importance of pastoral support for the nurse who has now successfully registered in the UK.
It might be of interest to providers and employees to connect with the diaspora organisation from which the nurse is arriving. Find out more.
Many of the union bodies support internationally recruited nurses and care workers with specific progammes, individual support and guidance. Here are some examples: