How to attract student nurses to primary care and community settings

Currently, nursing is proving to be an attractive career choice for people in England. A record number of 18-year-olds applying to study nursing in England in 2021, with the COVID pandemic playing a significant factor in their decision to apply. The pandemic has shone a positive spotlight on the profession and raised the public profile of nursing, as such there are many who are choosing nursing both at 18 and as a career change. Mature student applications have risen by a third; there has been the introduction of the Learning Support Fund and an investment of £55 million into practice placements all of which has contributed to an increase in applications to study nursing.¹