Shining a light on Nursing Support Workers

My name is Sandra-Jane Stock, although I’m more commonly known as SJ. I spent most of my working life in London but moved back to Norfolk in November last year.

The RCN has been an integral part of my career. I studied for my distance learning top-up degree in child health nursing with the RCN. The RCN also supported me through the ill-health retirement process.

Having got my head around no longer being a nurse after 39 years, I realised I still had a lot to give within the NHS and applied for a bank post which was made substantive after six months. At the same time, I applied for election to the Nursing Support Workers Committee and was successfully elected as the member for the Eastern region.

I have become very aware nursing support workers (NSWs) are often asked to work outside their banding, and this is an area I am very concerned about. Having worked as a nurse previously, I know how important it is to work within my own level of competence.

Many NSWs have a high level of experience, expertise and competency, but being given training for a skill does not necessarily mean it is a skill for which the NSW will be compensated for. Just as over time nurses have been expected to do more, so too have NSWs. Some may not feel comfortable about raising their concerns about what they are being asked to do. I have highlighted this issue with the Nursing Support Workers Committee and, with their approval, want to take it to Congress in 2024.

As you are reading this blog, you are probably already a member of the RCN and recognise the value of being a member of a union, but I am also concerned at the number of NSWs who do not belong to the RCN (or another union) and therefore have no representation. This is also something I hope can be highlighted by the RCN Shine a Light campaign on the Nursing Support Workers' Day on Thursday 23 November - a day which should focus on the fantastic work NSWs undertake every day. Something which is often under-recognised. Without NSWs, the work areas we work in would likely cease to function.

Thank you to each and every one of you for all you do. If anyone wishes to contact me, my RCN email is sandrajane.stock@reps.rcn.org.uk.