Posted on 28th May
Sherwood Forest Hospitals Trust, which runs Newark Hospital as well as King’s Mill Hospital, Sutton, and Mansfield Community Hospital, is offering aspiring nurses an opportunity to join its new apprenticeship programme
The trust was recently voted by its own nurses and doctors as the best hospital trust in the Midlands to work at.
It is offering school leavers and those who are looking for a career-change the opportunity to qualify as a nurse through its innovative nurse apprenticeship programme, even if they have no nursing experience.
The new Registered Nurse Degree Apprenticeship, in conjunction with Nottingham Trent University, will see aspiring nurses ‘learn on the job’, with a combination of working in a nursing environment alongside academic learning at the university. No healthcare or nursing experience or qualifications are necessary and young people can apply straight from school.
In total, there are 20 vacancies available and those that are successful in securing a place on the programme will benefit from an apprenticeship salary and tuition fees covered by the apprenticeship levy. Each apprentice will complete the three-year long programme with a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing and will be fully trained as a registered nurse. Applications are open now, with successful applicants starting the programme in September 2021.
Sherwood Forest Hospitals’ Chief Nurse, Julie Hogg, said: “We’re excited to be launching our new nurse degree programme as another option for those leaving school, or looking to change the direction of their career, to join the nursing profession.
“Nurses play an extremely important role in delivering safe care to our patients and this programme is an opportunity to get first-hand experience of being on the frontline with our Registered Nurses and other healthcare professionals, but gaining a qualification at the same time. It’s a fantastic opportunity for those who are interested in becoming a nurse to get into the profession straight away.”
Nottingham Trent University’s Healthcare Lead for Mansfield, Philip Clissett, added: “We are thrilled to be involved in healthcare education in Mansfield. We are aware that the last local preregistration nurse education provider ceased recruiting students to its courses nearly 10 years ago.
“Since then, local aspiring nurses have had to travel to universities for their theoretical input. It is possible that this posed a major barrier to those who have significant local commitments. We are hopeful that this new programme in Mansfield should diminish such barriers.
“We are particularly pleased to be working in partnership with Sherwood Forest Hospitals and look forward to welcoming new students to our purposely designed, state-of-the-art clinical skills facilities in the new academic year.”
If you’re interested in taking your first step into nursing, more information on how to apply is available on the NHS Jobs website.
