Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he plans to take to promote an inclusive culture in (a) the nursing workforce and (b) among senior nurses.

To help to build an inclusive culture across the National Health Service, NHS England published an Equality, Diversity and Inclusion improvement plan on 8 June 2023. The improvement plan sets out targeted actions to address prejudice and discrimination – direct and indirect – that exists through behaviour, policies, practices and cultures against certain groups and individuals. It has been co-produced through engagement with staff networks and senior leaders.

This builds on earlier work by the Chief Nursing Officer and Chief Midwifery Officer to support ethnic minority nurses and midwives. In September 2021, NHS England launched the Getting to Equity Programme for aspiring nurse and midwife ethnic minority leaders. In November 2022, NHS England published a Combatting Racial Discrimination resource for nursing and midwifery professionals in conjunction with the NHS Confederation and Nursing and Midwifery Council.