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‘A significant loss of expertise’ – report calls for action to reverse decline in school nurses

Pupil wellbeing Mental health Safeguarding Pastoral issues
A campaign for a school nurse in every school has been launched in a bid to reverse a ‘steep decline’ that has seen a 33% fall in the number of school nurses since 2009. Pete Henshaw takes a look
Image: Adobe Stock -

The figures are stark – the number of qualified school nurses has fallen by 33% in the last 13 years from 1,135 to 852 – many of whom it is feared will no longer be practising in schools.

Likewise, the number of NHS professionals working in school nursing (including qualified school nurses) has fallen from 2,915 to 1,945.

A report has laid bare the impact of this “significant loss of expertise, knowledge and skill” seen between September 2009 and December 2022.

The figures (NHS, 2023) show that the number of qualified school nurses first fell below 1,000 in 2019 and has been in decline ever since.

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