Any student who is studying to become a paramedic, radiographer or physiotherapist will be receiving a new form of financial support from September 2020 that entitles them to up to £5,000 worth of support payment each year.
This funding will be provided on top of existing support, including student loans, and is the first time paramedic students will benefit from additional NHS funding while at university.
The government first announced the new funding scheme in December of last year. They said that all new and continuing nursing, midwifery students and some allied health students on pre-registration courses at English universities will receive a £5,000 maintenance grant each year.
Minister for Care, Caroline Dinenage said:
“I want to see more people considering a career in learning disability nursing, helping to achieve our NHS Long Term Plan ambition to improve care for people with learning disabilities.”
This grant does not need to be paid back, and extra payments worth up to £3,000 per academic year are also available for eligible students. This means that these students could receive: £1,000 towards childcare costs, £1,000 if studying in a region that is struggling to recruit and £1,000 if they’re a new student who is studying a shortage specialism important to delivering the NHS Long Term Plan.
These shortage specialisms have recently been confirmed as: mental health nursing, learning disability nursing, radiography, prosthetics and orthotics and orthoptics and podiatry.
The government expects that these £5,000 maintenance grants will benefit around 100,000 pre-registration nursing,midwifery and allied health degree students each academic year. It comes as part of the government’s manifesto commitment to increase nurse numbers by 50,000 by the year 2025.
Jo Churchill, Minister for Public Health said:
“From paramedics to physiotherapists, radiographers to speech and language therapists, our talented allied health professionals are the third largest workforce in the NHS and support people to live better lives.”
She continued to say:
“I want those who would relish the job of saving people’s lives as a paramedic or diagnosing cancer as a radiographer to come forward to train, taking advantage of this fantastic new £5,000 support.”
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