Course summary

Being a children and young people’s nurse – or paediatric nurse, is a rewarding role which requires compassion, patience and versatility. Children’s nurses provide high quality, evidence-informed care for children experiencing a wide range of physical, emotional and mental health conditions and disabilities. They care for babies and children of all ages, providing support for their families and the teams involved with the child. Validated by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), our Bachelor of Nursing (BN) Child Field prepares you to become professional, caring, compassionate, skilled and competent nurse, who prioritises patient needs and delivers individualised nursing care to achieve the best health outcomes. Children's nursing care extends from birth to the age of 18, and sometimes older where the child is living with a complex medical health need or disability. Effective communication skills are key to the child being listened to and understood. Children may have speech and language needs, or difficulties with learning and understanding, and may be unable to speak or communicate their needs. Children’s nurses are also taught how to work closely with family members and carers to reduce the impact of being ill, or in hospital, and who often experience difficult or stressful circumstances. Clinical placements* across Wales are designed (subject to availability) to reflect the diversity of the hospital and community settings in which children’s nursing takes place. From the outset, clinical skills training builds the skills required to become a professional registered nurse. Our simulation-based training equipment, using VR and lifelike manikins, lets you safely examine ‘patients’ and interact in real-time to clinical situations based on real-life examples. This prepares you for the realities of working and responding to such situations, both on placement and future practice. Considerable financial support is available if you are considered a home student for tuition fees (someone already living within the UK) and can commit to working in Wales for two years on graduation. You could get your tuition fees covered in full through the NHS Wales bursary scheme and claim for a £1,000 bursary contribution to living costs. A wide range of additional support, subject to eligibility, is also available for childcare, parent learners, disabled students and more. Please see our website for more information *Please note that in order to achieve the necessary diversity of placement experience to meet the requirements for clinical competency, you will need to travel to placements across Wales.