NEW Nursing apprenticeships are to be offered in Cornwall.

Truro and Penwith College will offer the qualifications through a partenership with Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust (RCHT) and Greenwich University.

A new hospital simulation suite is set to be created at the campus.

The role of Nursing Associate has been created by the NHS to bridge the gap between a Healthcare Assistant and a Registered Nurse.

More than 100 of these positions are set to be filled when the first cohort of healthcare assistants from RCHT begin their two-year Apprenticeships at Truro and Penwith College in June.

The higher-level Apprenticeships are University of Greenwich Foundation Degree qualifications, allowing learners to study programmes from one of the leading nursing universities in the UK without leaving Cornwall.

The College says it wants to provide career pathways for local people and help bring more nurses into Cornwall’s frontline workforce.

Meanwhile, Truro and Penwith College is the first and only non-university to join the Nursing and Midwifery Council’s (NMC) list of approved education providers.

Kim O’ Keeffe, joint director of Nursing, Midwifery and Allied Health Professions at RCHT and Cornwall Foundation Trust, said: ’We are delighted to be working in partnership with Truro and Penwith College. Nursing Associates are a vital part of the nursing team in both health, and social care settings, and so developing their role is an exciting step forward for us here in Cornwall.

’Increasing opportunities to ‘earn while you learn’ releases the potential of local people, particularly the young, to commence fulfilling careers in both health and social care.’

Tutors delivering the training all possess extensive nursing experience and many continue as registered nurses within the NHS alongside their teaching careers.

Another new healthcare qualification to be offered in Cornwall from September is the two-year Level 3 Senior Healthcare Support Worker Apprenticeship. The College has already started delivering this programme to 20 members of staff currently working at RCHT.

This programme is available for those with no previous experience as an opportunity to start their careers in one of five specialist areas; adult nursing, maternity, children and young people, mental health, theatre support or allied health professions.

’The nursing associates programme is only the start,’ said director of Partnerships, Teaching and Learning with Truro and Penwith College Andy Stittle.

’Last month our partnership secured £100,000 from Health Education England to start delivery of the Operating Department Practitioner Apprenticeship in 2021.

’The range of courses now available provide local and well-designed pathways which provide opportunities for college leavers, existing employees in health and those seeking a career change.’

The College is also developing level 6 programmes (equivalent to a BSc Hons degree) with RCHT and the University of Greenwich and plans to offer these before the first group of Nursing Associates complete their training. This will provide a direct route that allows learners to work as fully qualified registered nurses.