Nurses: Schools

Dan Rogerson
To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects his Department’s target for one qualified school nurse to be allocated to each secondary school and its cluster of primary schools to be met.

Ann Keen
Working in partnership across health and education we have made good progress in expanding the qualified school nursing work force.

Linking primary schools to their nearest secondary school gives about 3,000 clusters in England. The 2009 work force census showed there were 4,177 (headcount) qualified nurses working in school health services, which is an increase of 1,768 or 73 per cent. since 2004. Of these, there were 1,620 (headcount) nurses with the post registration school nurse qualification. This is an increase of 764 or 89 per cent. since 2004.