University of Wolverhampton students have taken a campaign to provide better financial support for trainee nurses to Westminster.
Andy Rogers, Ian Unitt and Aimie Morgan were part of the Fund Our Future campaign, led by the Royal Council of Nursing (RCN), which lobbied MPs last week.
They joined 40 nursing students at the House of Commons to explain to MPs the financial challenges facing students.
Among those at the event were Wolverhampton MPs Eleanor Smith, who led the debate, and Emma Reynolds.
Andy Rogers, 55, from Walsall, is a Second year Mental Health Nursing student. He said: “The parliamentary drop-in event aimed to help MPs understand the financial challenges that nursing students face and what changes are needed, ahead of a debate in Parliament on investing in nursing higher education in England.
“The RCN student-led Fund our Future campaign is calling for a minimum of £1 billion a year back into nursing education in England as a matter of urgency.”
Ian Unitt, a third year Learning Disability Nursing student from Cradley Heath, added: “The financial challenges are difficult for all student nurses, but the implications are even greater for mature students like myself. The removal of the bursary has also affected the number of prospective students enrolling on to Learning Disability Nursing courses. 50% of all student Learning Disability Nurses are in the ‘mature’ category and the added financial burden has made it impossible for many to afford the cost of studying.”
Andy and Ian are both RCN Student Information Officers for the West Midlands region, which involves keeping other students up-to-date with what is happening and upcoming events. Andy also recently attended the first conference aimed at the network of RCN student members which also discussed the issue of funding for nursing students.
