'Student nursing placements should be paid'

The father of a student nurse said he was "blissfully ignorant" trainees were not paid for their NHS placements and has launched a petition.

Alex Lawrence, from Eye, Suffolk, has called for the abolishment of student nursing university fees and unpaid placements after his daughter, Tabatha, started her degree.

Peter Prinsley, the Labour MP for Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket, previously worked in the NHS for 30 years and said he agreed with the petition.

A government spokesperson said nurses played a "critical role" and there was a non-repayable grant of at least £5,000 available to help with their student placements.

As part of nursing degrees, students have to complete 2,300 hours of clinical placements that are unpaid while also paying for their tuition fees.

"If you've got the support of a family that don't charge you keep, you don't have to pay rent, maybe [who] make sure you get there every day, that's absolutely lovely," Mr Lawrence, whose petition has more than 6,200 signatures, said.

"But I do worry dearly about all the people out there that aren't quite as lucky, that might be fantastic nurses, doctors and dentists, but because of the financial implications will never get the chance," he added.

Mr Lawrence added he felt the non-repayable grant available to student nurses "barely" helped.

Prinsley said he agreed with Mr Lawrence that nurses were "essential" and he would sign the petition.

"If somebody asks me, 'Who looks after the patients?', I always say it is the nurses," he said.

"I agree with them that they certainly shouldn't be doing this for nothing.

"I think the whole thing really merits review."

Melanie McAteer, Suffolk's senior officer for Royal College of Nursing, said there had been a 35% drop in students applying for nursing degrees since 2021, and 21% of students drop out of the course each year.

"We know that nursing students have shocking experiences of being unable to afford food, being homeless and facing uncertain employment after qualifying," she added.

A spokesperson for the University of Suffolk said its applications for 2025 entry to undergraduate adult nursing were 3% lower compared with the same point last year.

The spokesperson added applications for children's nursing were higher and it had seen an uptake in nursing apprenticeships.

"Nurses play a critical role in providing high-quality, compassionate and safe care, as well as helping to restore our world-class NHS system, as part of our Plan for Change," a government spokesperson said.

"Eligible nurses receive a non-repayable grant of at least £5,000 per academic year from the NHS through the Learning Support Fund, in addition to maintenance and tuition fee loans provided by the Student Loans Company."

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