SOME 150 additional nursing apprentices can be recruited following a successful bid by the University of Cumbria.

Universities from across England were invited to submit bids to the Higher Education Funding Council for England’s degree apprenticeship development fund to increase the take up of a newly-developed programme.

The University of Cumbria bid proposed partnership working with NHS trusts and FE providers across the region, including the University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust and Furness College, in Barrow, to identify challenges and improve access routes into registered nurse degree apprenticeships.

Dr Louise Nelson, head of department for health, nursing and professional practice at the University of Cumbria, said: “Our success in winning the funding is excellent news.

“Alongside our partners, we will now be able to recruit 150 additional apprentices, eventually delivering a large cohort of qualified and registered nurses into the sector.”

The funding will be used to establish a project team that will work with partner organisations to identify barriers and solutions to accessing nursing degree apprenticeships. Funded from now until March 2018, the aim of the project is to enable the recruitment of an additional 150 apprentices to the University of Cumbria’s registered nurse degree apprenticeship by September 2018.

Others partner organisations include Lakes College in west Cumbria, Southport College, Bury College, and Nelson and Colne College. The other NHS trusts involved include Cumbria Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, Blackpool Victoria NHS Trust, Southport and Ormskirk NHS Trust, East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust, Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust and Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust.