Funding available for non-mental health nurses and midwives

With waiting lists for mental health services for children and young people at record highs, the RCN Foundation is proud to partner with the Leathersellers’ Company in offering an education programme to support nursing interventions within non-specialist settings.

The Leathersellers’ education grants programme will be a pilot project for one year. Grants of up to £1,600 will be available to 18 non-mental-health-registered nurses to undertake a postgraduate level module in childrens’ and adolescent mental health at a university of their choosing.

Through these studies, programme participants will develop interventions to support young patients in a non-mental health setting.

Upon graduating, the 18 nurses will be equipped with the evidence-based knowledge, confidence and skills needed to provide early interventions that support children and young people’s mental health and emotional wellbeing.

Crucially, the children and young people who receive this enhanced quality of care will experience improved health-related quality of life outcomes.

This education grants programme forms part of a wider RCN Foundation project focused on general mental health nursing for children and young people. Alongside this grants programme, the Foundation is funding the creation of an evidence-based toolkit designed for non-specialist nurses to use in the field with young patients.

Thanks to the Leathersellers’ Company donation, the RCN Foundation is able to support the career development of a greater number of nurses than we would alone. As a result, more children and young people will be able to experience improved outcomes for their mental health and emotional wellbeing.