Safe staffing | Royal College of Nursing

Safe staffing means having enough nursing staff with the right skills and knowledge, in the right place, at the right time. Without safe staffing levels in place, nursing staff are struggling to provide patients with the safe and effective care they would like to, and which patients deserve.

We're calling for safe and effective care to be enshrined in law in each UK country.

Calling for safe staffing across the UK

England

In England there is no law related to nurse staffing.

The RCN is campaigning for legislation to guarantee nurse staffing levels in England across all sectors and settings.

The Nurse Staffing Levels (Wales) Act 2016 was the first of its kind in the UK.

RCN Wales continues to campaign to protect patient care and empower the ward sister/charge nurse by advocating for the extension of the Nurse Staffing Levels (Wales) Act 2016 to children inpatient wards, mental health inpatient wards, community and care home settings.

> Join the campaign

Scotland

In May 2019 the Health and Care (Staffing) (Scotland) Act became law.

The RCN is now focused on monitoring how the law is implemented and making sure it achieves its aims.

Join the campaign

Northern Ireland

RCN members in Northern Ireland are currently undertaking a programme of industrial action to demand measures promoting safe nurse staffing and pay equality.

> Join the campaign

Our principles for staffing for safe and effective care

Accountability

We want it to be clear whose job it is to make sure there are enough nurses to meet patients’ needs.

Numbers

We want the right number of nurses, with the right skills, to be in the right place, at the right time - so patients’ needs are met .

Strategy

We want a vision for tackling nurse shortages and making sure nursing helps meet the whole country’s health needs.

Plans

We want clear plans for getting the right numbers and skill mix of nursing staff and we want checks to make sure they really happen.

Education

We want governments to educate enough nursing students, and develop existing staff, to meet patients’ needs.

Find out more about our safe staffing campaign

1 Dec 2020
Long term action required to ensure Scotland has the nursing workforce it needs

The global pandemic has brought into sharp focus many of the issues facing Scotland’s nursing workforce. Issues that the Royal College of Nursing has been highlighting for years.
10 Nov 2020
Joint letter to PM demands early pay rise to value staff

RCN and other unions warn exhausted workers could quit their jobs after second wave of COVID-19.
7 Nov 2020
Be honest about safety risks of short staffing this winter, demands RCN

The government must make decisions about NHS service provision based on available numbers of nursing staff and what they can safely maintain.
23 Sep 2020
Damaging working conditions for exhausted nursing staff must be improved

New report highlights the need for action to address stress and burnout in the profession.
17 Sep 2020
Staff safety at risk unless nursing shortages are addressed

The RCN is calling for urgent action to address the shortage of nursing staff across the health and care system. This includes giving nursing staff a meaningful pay rise.
28 Aug 2020
Royal College of Nursing launches Fair Pay for Nursing campaign

The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) today launches its ‘Fair Pay for Nursing’ campaign to demand a 12.5% pay rise for nursing staff across the UK.
9 Jul 2020
RCN Wales says the number of people joining and leaving the NMC register is worrying

RCN Wales responds to the publication of a new report by the NMC on its annual registration data between April 2019 to March 2020
9 Jun 2020
Openness and transparency key to rebuilding services

Commenting in response to today’s publication of a strategic framework for rebuilding HSC services, Pat Cullen, Director of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) in Northern Ireland said:
15 May 2020
Health unions publish blueprint for the safe opening up of the NHS

The guidelines aim to ensure the NHS can continue to operate a safety-first approach as lockdown restrictions ease.
18 Apr 2020
Half of nursing staff under pressure to work without PPE

Our survey reveals thousands of nursing professionals from across the UK are being asked to work without the right personal protective equipment (PPE) or to reuse single-use items.