A new report published today calls for action to address the steep decline in the number of school nurses in England.
The report is based on a round table meeting of nursing leaders, charities and government on 15th December 2023. The round table was a joint initiative by The Queen’s Nursing Institute (QNI), the College of Medicine, and the School and Public Health Nurses Association (SAPHNA), funding was provided by Sanofi. The report brings together evidence and insights about the decline in school nurse numbers since 2009, summarises the impact on the health and wellbeing of children and young people, and offers a range of solutions.
There has been a 33% fall in the number of school nurses since 2009 across England, though this headline figure hides great variation: in some local authority areas school nursing is no longer commissioned at all. This is a clear instance of a postcode lottery with very serious consequences for families and for child health.
While the Healthy Child Programme 5-19 offers a plan for good child health, local authorities, which have commissioned school nursing since 2012 do not have the resources to deliver on the plan. School nurses are unable to work as true public health professionals, instead being limited to predominantly concentrate all nursing work on safeguarding for the most vulnerable.
The round table called for a range of actions to address the issues, including building national political will and encouraging Integrated Care Boards to prioritise school nursing within healthcare strategies for children and young people. Organisations such as SAPHNA and the QNI must also continue to support school nurses to raise their voice and demonstrate their value and impact on the health and wellbeing of children and young people within the system.
Dr Crystal Oldman CBE, the QNI’s chief executive commented, “It is remarkable that we are talking about building political will to improve the health of children in this country. School nursing services have been allowed to atrophy since they were transferred to cash-starved local authorities. We urgently need to invest in school nursing services that have a proven positive impact on the physical, mental and emotional health of children and young people at a crucial time in their lives. We have a duty of care that must be enacted today.”
Sharon White OBE, CEO at the School and Public Health Nurses Association added, “The downward trajectory of our children’s health is nothing less than horrifying. Re-emergence of Dickensian diseases such as rickets, scurvy and malnutrition, hospital admissions for teeth extractions, rises in vaping, in sexually transmitted diseases, all of this and more can be positively impacted by urgently resourcing the school nursing workforce, who, trusted and respected by parents, children and schools alike and for relatively low investment, can change this picture and restore hope and respect for our children’s futures.”
Dr Michael Dixon OBE, the College of Medicine, who chaired the round table, welcomed the report saying: “A school nurse for every school is an ambition in the College’s Hope for the Future manifesto (2021) and this is an important step in making it happen. Participants pledged to move into action to help ensure school nursing is prioritised with investment in this highly skilled workforce.”
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