Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will consider the restoration of an apprenticeship-based route to qualification as a state registered nurse.

As part of the Government agenda to develop aspirational apprenticeships, the Department of Health and Health Education England have actively supported the development of an apprentice standard for a registered nurse. This has recently been approved by the Department for Education. The employer-led Trailblazer Group will need to complete the assessment plan and end point assessment before the standard is ready for delivery and can be used by employers.

We expect to see the first nursing degree apprenticeship programmes begin in September 2017.