A disaster in the making for midwifery staffing says RCM on UCAS figures

By RCM on 02 February 2017 Student midwives Bursaries and Scholarships

Figures released by UCAS show applications for midwifery and nursing are down by nearly 25%.

Commenting on the figures, Jon Skewes, Director for Policy, Employment Relations and Communications at the Royal College of Midwives, said: “It seems a remarkable coincidence that this drastic fall in applications comes soon after the announcement that midwifery and nursing students are having their bursary scrapped and will have to pay tuition fees. This could leave them £60,000 in debt when they qualify.

“This is a disaster in the making for midwifery staffing in the NHS in England where there is already a shortage of 3500 full time midwives. I repeat our call for the Government to revisit their ill informed and poorly thought through decision to scrap bursaries. “

The UCAS statistics can be found at https://www.ucas.com/corporate/news-and-key-documents/news/applicants-uk-higher-education-down-5-uk-students-and-7-eu-students.

To contact the RCM Press Office call 020 7312 3456 or email pressofficer@rcm.org.uk.

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Notes to editors

The RCM is the only trade union and professional association dedicated to serving midwifery and the whole midwifery team. We provide workplace advice and support, professional and clinical guidance and information, and learning opportunities with our broad range of events, conferences and online resources. For more information visit the RCM website at https://www.rcm.org.uk/.