RCN analysis has found that parts of England risk becoming “learning disability nurse deserts,” with collapsing student numbers in every region, and courses closing. We’re urging the UK government to act, warning the crisis could leave vulnerable people without access to vital care.
There’s been a 36% decrease in the number of acceptances onto learning disability courses in England in the last 8 years. Now, in the South East, not a single university offered the degree in 2024. In addition, the number of learning disability nurses employed in the NHS in England fell by nearly half under the previous government between May 2010 and July 2024.
Reforms to nursing education have been particularly damaging to learning disability nursing, a specialty that draws heavily from mature students. They made up three-quarters of all acceptances in 2023, but numbers accepted onto courses have fallen by a third since 2015.
Most of the period analysed encompasses the period after the nursing bursary was scrapped in England and universal maintenance support removed for nursing undergraduates.
The RCN is now calling for the government to show unparalleled ambition in re-imagining learning disability nursing in the modern world, urging ministers to incorporate a new vision into the refreshed NHS workforce strategy. This must include support for regional action to address severe workforce crises, where the future pipeline of learning disability nurses is under threat.
Additionally, it is vital that a loan forgiveness model is introduced for those who commit to delivering the specialty in public services and greater financial support is available during study through universal maintenance grants.
RCN Chief Nursing Officer Lynn Woolsey said: “Learning disability nursing is an incredibly rewarding career, supporting some of the most vulnerable to live happier and healthier lives. But the specialty has suffered years of neglect and underinvestment, causing recruitment to collapse and decimating workforce numbers.
“Transforming the care for people with learning disabilities couldn’t be more urgent. That starts with investing in the workforce that delivers their care. This means fair pay, funding nursing education, and loan forgiveness as key fundamental policies to recruit and retain more nurses.”
Jackie O’ Sullivan, Executive Director of Strategy and Influence at learning disability charity Mencap said that having access to a learning disability nurse can be a matter of life and death for people with a learning disability.
She added: “A shocking 42% of deaths among people with a learning disability in 2022 were avoidable, mainly because of difficulties accessing care and treatment. These specialist nurses help people get the care they need, both in hospitals and in the community, and vitally make sure that someone’s learning disability isn’t used as a reason for them to be refused treatment or – in some cases – resuscitation.
“The NHS England 10-year plan needs to address this current workforce issue which means it is a postcode lottery as to whether people with a learning disability have a learning disability nurse available to them. It should commit to increasing recruitment of these skilled roles.”
Lord Darzi’s report into the NHS in England highlighted the “particularly concerning drop in the number of learning disabilities nurses”, and the need to investigate further the wide disparity in life expectancy for people with learning disabilities.
Last week, the UK government proposed a 2.8% pay uplift for NHS nursing staff. This offer will further deter people joining the profession and becoming learning disability nurses.
