Following campaigning by the Royal College of Nursing, a change to the NHS national terms and conditions handbook reflects the accountability nurses take for patient safety.
The accountability and responsibility for patient safety which nurses quickly acquire at the start of their careers has been recognised with a change to Annex 20 in the NHS Terms and Conditions of Service handbook. This section concerns the development of professional roles, enabling progression from band 5 to 6 for certain graduate-level roles.
The updated section now specifically mentions nurses.
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has been campaigning and lobbying governments, NHS Employers and within NHS Staff Council for Annex 20 to apply to the nursing workforce given the profession’s demands, responsibility and the pivotal role nursing plays in the NHS.
This annex can inform workplace planning and these changes remove a significant barrier to nursing progression.
Annex 20 forms part of RCN members’ contractual terms and conditions in the NHS and has been applied to other allied health professions. Although examples of its limited use in respect of nursing have been seen, it hasn’t been used universally for the nursing profession by employers across the UK.
Symbolic and important
“This update is a symbolic and important step towards recognition of nursing’s value. We’ve been calling for this for a long time – nursing staff have been left falling behind for too long,” said RCN general secretary and chief executive Nicola Ranger.
“We firmly believe nursing deserves a career structure that supports clear progression with greater reward to recognise skills, competence, expertise and greater responsibilities assumed while keeping care close to the patient,” she added.
During the Health and Social Care Select Committee in Westminster on 17 December, health secretary Wes Streeting directly referred to the issue.
He told MPs that Nicola had been “banging the drum really hard on this issue” on the professional status of nursing and recognising the contribution and value of nursing to the NHS.
“Your job description should accurately reflect the work you do today. If you work in the NHS, it’s an intrinsic part of your terms and conditions. If you work in independent health and social care settings, check whether your employer has its own job evaluation system in place,” he said.
