Children's nurse

As a children's nurse (or paediatric nurse), you'll support the treatment and recovery of babies, children and young people by monitoring their condition, developing and delivering care plans, and carrying out nursing procedures. Health problems can range from minor illnesses to acute and long-term conditions.

You'll work closely with children and their parents or carers in the context of their medical, social, cultural and family circumstances, helping them understand treatment and providing reassurance and support. With younger children, this may involve interpreting behaviour and non-verbal cues to understand how they're feeling.

Children's nurses work as part of multidisciplinary healthcare teams in settings such as hospitals, clinics, day care centres and children's own homes.

Responsibilities

Depending on the setting, as a children's nurse you'll need to:

• build trusting relationships with children and young people, listening to and interpreting their physical and emotional needs
• work in partnership with families and carers to plan and deliver person-centred care
• assess, monitor and respond to changes in a child's condition, recognising when further intervention is needed
• work under pressure to respond to emergencies and challenging situations
• communicate openly and honestly with patients and their families or carers, showing empathy and compassion
• assist with tests, evaluations and observations, using medical equipment and monitoring technology
• administer medicines, injections and treatments safely, using a reassuring approach
• promote health and wellbeing, and support families to manage long-term conditions
• advocate on behalf of patients and their families, including making ethical decisions related to consent and confidentiality
• maintain high standards of safeguarding, infection prevention and patient safety
• accurately update patient records and reports before completing a shift.

In more senior roles, you may support and mentor student and newly qualified nurses or take responsibility for service delivery and workforce planning.

Salary

• Newly qualified nurses start on salaries of £31,049 to £37,796 (Band 5 of the NHS Agenda for Change (AfC) pay rates).
• With experience, salaries typically range from £38,682 to £46,580 (Band 6). Specialist and senior nursing roles may attract salaries of between £47,810 and £54,710 (Band 7).
• Modern matron and nurse consultant roles are usually between £55,690 and £62,682 (Bands 8a). Heads and directors of nursing may earn more.

Salaries in London attract a high-cost area supplement. The NHS offers a pension scheme as well as sickness and parental leave.

Pay and other benefits in the private sector vary depending on the employer, location and role.

Income figures are intended as a guide only.

Working hours

Standard working hours in the NHS are 37.5 hours a week, with opportunities for overtime. Shift work is common in hospital settings, including nights, weekends and bank holidays, although some services operate regular daytime hours.

Children's nurses working in community settings are more likely to have regular daytime working hours, though some roles may involve evening, weekend or on-call work. Part-time, term-time and job-share arrangements may be available, and freelance or agency nursing is also an option.

What to expect

• Children's nursing can be physically and emotionally demanding but also rewarding when you see the positive impact of your care on children and their families.
• You'll need to manage stressful and sometimes distressing situations, while providing compassionate support to children, families and carers.
• You'll work as part of a multidisciplinary team with other healthcare professionals, ensuring the nursing perspective is heard.
• Opportunities exist in most towns and cities. Some hospitals offer specialist services for rarer conditions.
• Most roles are based in hospitals on specialist wards or in community settings. You won't usually need to travel during the working day in hospital-based roles, but community children's nurses often travel between patients' homes, schools or clinics as part of their day-to-day work.

Qualifications

To work as a children's nurse in the UK, you must be registered with the Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC). This requires completion of either a pre-registration degree in children's nursing or a registered nurse degree apprenticeship (RNDA) delivered by an NMC-approved educational institution.

Degrees usually last three years full time in England, or four years in Scotland or if you're taking a dual-field nursing degree. Courses combine academic study with clinical placements, giving you experience of working with patients and families in settings such as hospitals, community services and patients' homes.

Entry requirements vary but typically include at least two (usually three) A-levels or equivalent qualifications, plus GCSEs in English, maths and a science. Some courses offer a foundation year if you don't have the required qualifications.

If you have relevant practice-based learning or a degree in a related subject, you may be able to use accreditation of prior experiential learning (APEL) to meet some of the programme requirements. However, this is at the discretion of individual course providers. Graduates with relevant experience may be eligible for a two-year accelerated pre-registration Masters course in children's nursing.

Search the list of NMC-Approved Programmes.

All eligible pre-registration children's nursing students in England can receive at least £5,000 per year in non-repayable funding, depending on personal circumstances. You can still apply for tuition fee and maintenance loans from the Student Loans Company. For more information, see Health Careers.

For details of financial support available elsewhere in the UK, see:

• Student Awards Agency Scotland
• Student Awards Services (Wales)
• Northern Ireland Direct Government Services

RNDAs provide a work-based route into nursing. You'll be employed in a healthcare setting while studying part time at an NMC-approved university. Apprenticeships usually take four years, although this may be shorter with APEL. Training costs are covered by the employer, and you'll earn a salary while studying.

You must also meet the NMC's health and character requirements, including a criminal records check. On successful completion, you'll be eligible to register with the NMC as a Registered Nurse (Children).

Skills

You will need to have:

• strong communication and interpersonal skills to work effectively with children, young people, their families and multidisciplinary healthcare teams
• empathy, sensitivity and emotional resilience when caring for patients and families in distressing or complex situations
• the ability to build trust and provide children-centred care, supporting patients both emotionally and physically
• excellent observation skills and attention to detail to monitor patients' conditions and recognise changes
• sound clinical judgement to make safe, timely decisions about care
• the ability to prioritise and manage complex care for patients
• effective teamworking and collaboration skills to ensure safe, coordinated care
• the ability to remain calm under pressure in busy and challenging clinical environments
• good organisational, time management and IT skills to manage workloads and maintain accurate patient records
• leadership skills, particularly as you progress into more senior roles.

For community roles, you'll usually need a driving licence and access to a car.

Work experience

Course providers will expect you to have an understanding of the role of a children's nurse, as well as a commitment to NHS values, which include compassion, respect and dignity, and working together for patients.

Gaining relevant experience with children, young people or families in health, care or community settings can help demonstrate your motivation and give you an insight into whether children's nursing is right for you. This experience can be paid or voluntary and may take place in settings such as children's wards, neonatal units, community health services, GP surgeries, schools, nurseries or hospices.

Hands-on roles such as healthcare assistant, support worker or care worker are valuable. Experience supporting children with disabilities, long-term conditions or additional needs can be particularly relevant. Even short-term or part-time roles can help you develop the empathy, communication and teamwork skills that nursing courses look for.

If possible, try to visit a hospital or community setting, speak to children's nurses about their work, or take part in shadowing opportunities, insight days or virtual events offered by universities or NHS trusts.

Find out more about the different kinds of work experience and internships that are available.

Employers

Many children's nurses work in NHS hospitals, including children's hospitals and specialist paediatric units. Other settings include:

• general practices (GPs) and community health services
• school nursing services and special schools
• accident and emergency departments with paediatric services
• patients' homes, as part of community nursing teams
• private healthcare organisations
• nursing agencies
• charities and voluntary organisations
• travel companies and holiday resorts.

Some children's nurses are based entirely in the community, supporting children as a community children's nurse.

Look for job vacancies at:

• NHS Jobs (England and Wales) and NHS Scotland Jobs
• Nursing Times
• RCNi Nursing Jobs
• Health Jobs UK
• HSC Jobs - health and social care jobs in Northern Ireland.

Jobs are also advertised on individual NHS trust websites. You can search for apprenticeship vacancies on NHS Jobs.

Specialist nursing agencies, such as Pulse and Newcross Healthcare, recruit for both permanent and temporary positions in the UK and overseas. For a searchable directory of agencies, see the Nursing Agencies List.

Professional development

Newly registered children's nurses usually begin their first role with a period of preceptorship, which provides structured support as they transition into professional practice and build confidence in caring for children, young people and their families. In Scotland, newly qualified nurses take part in the Flying Start NHS programme.

Registration with the NMC must be renewed every three years and requires a commitment to continuing professional development (CPD), reflective practice and safe, effective working. Find out more about NMC revalidation requirements.

CPD may include formal training, courses, workshops, conferences, online learning and learning gained through day-to-day practice, such as developing age-appropriate clinical skills, communication techniques and safeguarding knowledge, often involving collaboration with other healthcare professionals.

As you gain experience, you'll have access to a range of development opportunities, which vary by employer and may support progression into specialist children's nursing roles, education, leadership or management roles. Many nurses also join professional bodies such as the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) to access training, events and career support.

Career prospects

There is a clear career structure in nursing. Once qualified, you can gain experience and undertake further training to progress into more senior roles such as senior staff nurse, ward sister/charge nurse and ward manager. These types of roles often involve increased responsibility for supervising staff, managing services and contributing to service improvement.

There are opportunities to specialise in a range of hospital or community-based areas, including paediatric specialties such as neonatal care, paediatric intensive care, safeguarding or long-term condition management, as well as community children's nursing.

Alternatively, or alongside leadership roles, some nurses develop enhanced or advanced levels of clinical practice, gaining specialist knowledge and greater autonomy in their role. Some nurses progress from advanced to consultant-level posts, combining advanced clinical practice with leadership, education and research.

Career pathways may also lead into education, research, advisory or senior management roles, including posts at executive level within NHS organisations.

Outside the NHS, opportunities exist in private healthcare, charities, voluntary organisations or overseas health services.