Helen Whyley, Director RCN Wales, said: “The RCN welcomes the announcement that the NHS Wales Bursary scheme will continue for the 2021/2022 and 2022/2023 academic year. It is a shame that it is only a two- year extension to an essential funding stream for undergraduate nursing programmes. The funding of nurse education in Wales is essential to building a sustainable workforce and filling the significant vacancies for nurses across Wales. I feel strongly that there is no a need for yet another comprehensive exercise on the NHS Wales Bursary. We know that it is effective and already chosen by many student nurses. RCN Wales is calling on the Welsh Government to make a permanent commitment to investing in safeguarding the nursing student bursary in Wales.”
She added: “A bursary funding stream encourages and supports students from all socio-economic backgrounds to come to Wales in order to study. We know form the experience in England that removing an NHS Bursary has seen the numbers of mature students coming into nursing fall dramatically. While there is currently a strong supply of applicants for student places at Welsh Universities with the lowest attrition (drop-out) rate in the UK we can’t make the most of this offer when it continues to be so short term.”
