Return to Practice (Nursing) course

You will develop skills as a reflective practitioner and enhance your ability to effectively use current evidence to inform your practice.

Course content reflects contemporary nursing issues, and includes:

• NMC (2018): Future nurse standards for proficiencies
• NHS reforms - safeguarding
• the Mental Capacity Act 2005
• advances in technology, including medical devices and health informatics
• compassion in practice and dignity in care
• the 6Cs
• equality and diversity
• medicines management
• infection control

The programme at City consists of 10 face to face/virtual learning study days, 10 self-managed learning study days and a period of clinical placement with an organisation.

The number of clinical practice hours required can be found below, although some may take longer depending on you completing the required Practice Assessment Document

• Break in nursing up to 4 years – 180 clinical practice hours
• Break in nursing 4 years to 5 years – 250 clinical practice hours
• Break in nursing more than 5 years – 300 clinical practice hours

As part of this course you will need to complete a placement within either an acute, community or general practice setting.

Please note: we do not secure or find clinical placements. To undertake this programme you must be offered an approved placement by the NHS Trust or organisation.

Find more course information with our Return to Practice flyer.

Who is it for?

Who is it for? The Return to Practice Programme is for Nurses who have not met the revalidation requirement and whose registration has lapsed.

Timetable

The programme consists of ten study days, which are held weekly over a period of ten weeks.

Benefits

The Return to Practice Programme has been approved to meet the new standards for Future Nurse Proficiencies (2018) and the Standards for RTP (2019).

This course is worth 30 credits at Level 6 toward eligible programmes.

You will be supported to refresh your study skills, develop your academic writing and plan your future professional and personal development. In practice, you will work closely with a named assessor who will enable you to refresh and develop your practice in either an acute, community or general practice setting.

Read our student profiles to find out why they choose to study Return to Practice Nursing at City, their experiences, and advice for anyone considering this course:

• Dorothy Flatman
• Stephen Frith
• Aileen Keigher

The key takeaway for this course is the development of knowledge and skills that are essential to a return to nursing practice.

You will participate in seminars, workshops, online discussion, and clinical skills updates. You will also complete sixty hours of self-directed learning and complete a minimum of 180 hours depending on how long you had a break in Nursing as follows:

• Break in Nursing up to 4 years – 180 clinical practice hours
• Break in Nursing between 4 to 5 years – 250 clinical practice hours
• Break in Nursing more than 5 years – 300 clinical practice hours

This is also subject to meeting required competencies within a hospital, community or general practice setting.

You will complete a practice portfolio, in which your achievement of practice based competencies will be assessed by your practice assessor. You will also complete a 2,000-word assignment in which you will reflect on your practice and critically analyse skills and competencies.

On successful completion you will be award a Certificate in Return to Nursing.

Credits

This course is worth 30 credits toward eligible programmes.

How to apply

If you are interested in applying for our programme:

1. Submit an application via the "Apply now" button at the top of the webpage.
2. Confirm a clinical placement has been secured by emailing the maria.lynch@city.ac.uk.

Applicants must also submit the following documentation to be considered for this programme

• A letter of application (including details of how long you have been out of nursing practice, past experience and rational for why you wish to return to nursing at this time
• Full details of any Conditions of Practice/Suspension Orders you currently have or had with the NMC
• A current CV with full details of your current employment and past nursing employment
• A current NMC Statement of Entry (this can be obtained by accessing your own Personal Profile on the NMC Online platform)
• scanned copy of the photo page of your passport.

It is important that these steps are completed three weeks prior to the intake of the course otherwise your entry onto the programme will be delayed.

Advice on sourcing a clinical placement can be obtained by the following:

• Maggie Platt - Lead Nurse - Return to Practice/International Nurses Bureau NCL Capital Nurse: maggiepratt@nhs.net
• Viv Greening - Placement Development Facilitator: Vivienne.Greening@gstt.nhs.uk
• Nicole Riordan, Bureau Lead for South West London: nicole.riordan@nhs.net
• Sandra Mercadal, Bureau Lead for South East London: sandra.mercadal@gstt.nhs.uk
• Deborah  Adegunwa, Bureau Lead for North West London: deborah.adegunwa@nhs.net

Further advice about the programme can be gained from returntopractice.london@hee.nhs.uk

Funding

Funding may be available for nurses returning to practice; please visit the Come Back to Nursing website to find out more.

For funding queries please contact Lyndsey Carpenter (Return to Practice Project Manager for Health Education England) on Lyndsey.carpenter@hee.nhs.uk

Current opportunities

Our NHS Partner Trusts offer a variety of both Student Contracts and Salaried Positions for nurses with lapsed registrations to complete the Return to Practice programme (RTP) with City, University of London.

Course Requirements Include:

• You must reside in the UK as you will be required to attend an interview at the university and will also be required to undertake a clinical placement in the NHS.
• A lapsed nursing registration (NMC PIN)
• A DBS check will be carried out and you must have satisfactory occupational health clearance.
• applicants must have an approved placement in place as this is a requirement to undertake this course, this can be within either an acute, community or general practice setting. We are not able to assist you with securing a placement and this must be secured prior to joining the programme.
• Must attend Interview/Joint Interview (as applicable) where you will be able to discuss whether you wish to join full time or part time. Satisfactory outcomes must be at joint Interview.
• Satisfactory references

Applicants must also submit the following documentation to be considered for this programme

• A letter of application (including details of how long you have been out of nursing practice, past experience and rational for why you wish to return to nursing at this time
• Full details of any Conditions of Practice/Suspension Orders you currently have or had with the NMC
• A current CV with full details of your current employment and past nursing employment
• A current NMC Statement of Entry (this can be obtained by accessing your own Personal Profile on the NMC Online platform)
• A scanned copy of the photo page of your passport.

English requirements

You will need a good level of spoken and written English to enrol on this course.