Independent analysis, carried out by London Economics, found that forgiving nurses' student loans would retain more than 14,000 nurses working in the NHS over 10 years – enough to fill over half the current vacancies in England.
A loan forgiveness scheme would see nurses have their loans ‘forgiven' by government in return for working in the NHS and wider public services for a period of time after the completion of their degree.
The RCN says it would be a ‘highly effective way' to ease the nurse retention crisis, improving patient care and paving the way for successful government health service reforms, in a series of recommendations.
Independent researchers calculated that the economic value of the additional work as a result of retaining more nursing staff is worth the equivalent of £1.162bn a year, in a boost for productivity. If implemented now, the measure would result in the equivalent to an additional 65,000 nurse-years worked in the NHS per graduating cohort.
In addition, the nurses told the researchers they would be willing to commit to between 7-10 more years in roles that offered student loan forgiveness than roles that did not.
The report looked in detail at the domestic supply of nurses in England. It found that there has been a 35% drop in applications to nursing courses in England since 2021 and a 19% decrease in acceptances, while 21% of nursing students will drop out before completing their studies. Of those currently considering quitting, 70% gave financial difficulties as their reason.
RCN general secretary and chief executive, Professor Nicola Ranger, said: ‘Nursing and patients are being failed by a broken education system. The prospect of huge debt continues to put off the nurses of the future, whilst those that do enter the profession are given little reason to stay in their jobs. This results in too few nurses in our services and falling standards of care for patients, with the most vulnerable suffering the most.
‘A loan forgiveness model for those who commit to working in the NHS and public services would make nursing a much more attractive career, boosting recruitment and retention. There is a clear economic case for this policy, providing great value for money to both the taxpayer and our public services. The government must give it serious consideration if it wants to transform patient care.'
