Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the reasons for the decline in the number of student nurse applications since 2016; and if he will make a statement.

The Department is working with relevant bodies across health and education to monitor the effects of the healthcare funding reforms, including the impact on application numbers.

There is still strong demand for nursing courses. Latest Universities and Colleges Admissions Service data for September 2018 show that there are still more applicants than places available for nursing courses.

The Department is also working with its arm’s length bodies on a number of actions to increase recruitment and retention of the nursing workforce.

NHS England, with the support of the Department and Health Education England (HEE), has launched a major advertising campaign, aimed at encouraging recruitment to the National Health Service, retaining the existing workforce, and promoting the possibility of a return to the workforce for those who have previously worked in the NHS. The campaign has a strong focus on nursing, and builds upon HEE’s #KnowAboutNursing campaign, which has been running since May of this year.

We have also opened new work based learning routes into the nursing profession for those who may not be able to study full-time. The new Nursing Associate role and the Nurse Degree Apprenticeship will open routes into the registered nursing profession for thousands of people from all backgrounds and allow employers to grow their own workforce.

We have agreed a new pay deal that will see around 1 million NHS workers benefit over three years.

In addition, my Rt hon. Friend the member for Bromsgrove has announced there will be no restriction on the numbers of nurses who can be employed through the Tier 2 visa route – giving health and social care employers the ability to recruit more international nurses to provide outstanding patient care whenever and wherever required.