A NEW course is designed to increase the number of nurses in the NHS.

Activate Learning has launched its International Nursing Bridging Programme (INBP) to provide extra skills to qualified nurses based overseas.

The project is being delivered in conjunction with NHS trusts which Activate Learning already has a working relationship with.

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Niko Phillips, a group director at Activate Learning, said: “Previously, qualified nurses have had to come from overseas to the UK and the NHS has had to spend time and money making that person ready to transition from an unregistered to a registered nurse in the UK.

“For those people taking this course, they will feel much more ready to take up work here in the UK once they complete this course and it will help to create a new flow of much-needed talent into our vital NHS services.

“This is a fantastic, exciting opportunity for everyone involved in the programme and although we are only working with a handful of trusts right now, our ambition is to scale this up over the next five years and roll it out across the UK.”

The course will also allow nurses to improve their English language skills, ready for work at busy trusts.