Nursing students will benefit from guaranteed, additional support of at least £5,000 a year to help with living costs.
The funding will be given to all new and continuing degree-level nursing, midwifery and many allied health students from September 2020. It is expected to benefit more than 35,000 students every year.
The announcement of the funding comes ahead of the UCAS university application deadline of 15 January.
The funding comes as part of the government's pledge to increase nurse numbers by 50,000 over the next 5 years.
Students will receive at least £5,000 a year, with up to £3,000 further funding available for eligible students, including for:
- specialist disciplines that struggle to recruit, including mental health
- an additional childcare allowance, on top of the £1,000 already on offer
- areas of the country which have seen a decrease in people accepted on some nursing, midwifery and allied health courses over the past year
This means that some students could be eligible for up to £8,000 per year, with everyone getting at least £5,000. The funding will be available from next year.
