Nursing (Child) BSc(Hons)

NMC and vaccination requirements

For all nursing courses leading to registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) as a nurse, you must demonstrate the following:

• completion of 10 years general education
• successful completion of literacy and numeracy assessments during the interview process
• evidence of study within the last five years is desirable
• evidence of commitment to the profession
• passing of occupational health and Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks
• ability to meet travel requirements to attend placements
• ability to follow a shift pattern that could cover any part of a 24-hour seven-day cycle.

Occupational health screening and vaccinations
You will need to complete an occupational health screening and we strongly encourage that you get all of the required vaccinations. Particular vaccinations are a requirement of certain NHS placement providers and are in place to protect you and the patients. Without the appropriate vaccinations you will not be able to undertake some placements – and this may impact on your ability to complete your course. The list of required vaccinations is updated by the NHS and may change over the course of your studies.

Top reasons to choose this course

• Accredited by the Nursing and Midwifery Council.
• Placements with NHS and non-NHS healthcare providers in both acute and community settings.
• Learn in our clinical skills and simulation suites, and practice independently in our nursing skills zone.
• You’ll share some modules with students on our adult and mental health nursing degrees, allowing you to benefit from interprofessional collaboration. 
• Support throughout your degree from our student-run Nursing Society.
• 100% of our graduates are in work or further study 15 months after their degree, 100% of working graduates in highly skilled work as nursing professionals – Graduate Outcomes Survey.
• Non-repayable grant of at least £5,000 each academic year.
• Brighton is in the UK top 25% for graduate earnings in nursing and midwifery, three years after graduating – Longitudinal Education Outcomes 2022.

Course structure

Throughout the degree you will develop understanding of child development and the importance of a child and family-centred approach – this includes looking after unwell children and young people and well children and young people through child health surveillance.   

In each year of the degree, you’ll engage with both theory and practice learning, alternating between academic terms of lectures and workshops and blocks of practice. In total during your degree you will complete 2,300 academic hours and 2,300 of practice learning.

University learning is Monday to Friday with independent study days. Practice placement blocks are 37.5 hours per week and between 4 and 10 weeks long.

You’ll share some modules with students on our adult and mental health nursing degrees, allowing you to benefit from interprofessional collaboration. Other modules are child field specific, allowing you to explore the basis of nursing children and young people and begin to forge your professional identity.

Recognising that patients come first in everything the NHS does, and the values of the NHS constitution – respect, dignity, compassion and working together for service users – are embedded in our curriculum.

As a student on this course you’ll also get to participate in Schwartz Rounds - hour-long sessions where students come together to listen to stories and share reflections in a supportive and confidential environment. The sessions offer the opportunity to reflect on the emotional aspects of clinical practice and are designed to support students and recent graduates working in complex settings.

Making sure that what you learn with us is relevant, up to date and what employers are looking for is our priority, so courses are reviewed and enhanced on an ongoing basis. When you have applied to us, you’ll be told about any new developments through Student View.

Year 1

You will be introduced to the nursing profession and begin your development of the required knowledge and skills for children’s nursing practice. You will also develop an understanding of the structure and function of the human body. You’ll spend around 50% of your time on placement.

Modules

• Nursing Assessment in Partnership with People

  This module will enable you to undertake a holistic nursing assessment of a person in terms of their mental, physical, social and spiritual needs. You’ll learn the importance of completing an assessment in partnership with the person, taking into account their circumstances, characteristics and preferences.

  You will also gain an understanding of the role of the nurse in assessing the person’s needs as a member of the multi-disciplinary team (MDT).

• Planning Nursing Care in Partnership with People

  This module will enable you to plan nursing care based on the information gained from a holistic nursing assessment. You’ll learn the importance of identifying priorities in the mental, physical, social and spiritual needs of the person and formulating a plan of care in partnership with the person and the multi-disciplinary team (MDT).

• Human Biology for Nursing

  This module will enable you to explore human biology in relation to the health, well-being and illness of a person across the lifespan. You’ll develop an understanding of how human biology and altered physiology underpins your developing nursing practice.

• Practice Learning for Nursing Year 1

  This practice assessment of the course is divided into three parts. This module comprises part one, which will enable you to begin developing the knowledge, skills and values required for nursing practice.

  You will integrate learning from your placement and at university in order to meet the Future Nurse: Standards of proficiency for registered nurses (Nursing and Midwifery Council [NMC] 2018).

Year 2

In year 2 you will continue to build your skills, knowledge and professional identity. You will gain insight into children’s health services and nursing roles within public health, acute services, community, and research. Around 50% of year 2 will also be spent on placement.

Modules

• Quality Improvement Using Evidence-based Nursing Practice
• Nursing to Promote Health and Prevent Illness
• Child Development and Transitions
• Assessing and Planning Complex Care in Children's Nursing
• Practice Learning for Children’s Nursing Year 2.

Final year

In your final year you will continue to specialise in the field of children's nursing, focussing on the more complex care needs of children, young people and their families.

In addition to your placement, you will undertake an individual project and develop your professional practice and identity further in the areas of leadership, physical assessment and decision making. You’ll also consider the wider context of children and young people’s healthcare as you prepare to enter the profession as a registered nurse and member of the children’s workforce.

Modules

• Contemporary and Future Nursing Practice
• Enhanced Physical Assessment of the Child and Young Person
• Leading and Managing Nursing Care and Effective Teams
• Children's Nursing in Context
• Practice Learning for Children’s Nursing Year 3

Facilities

Placements and practice learning 

You will complete 2,300 hours of practice learning, including 150 hours of Simulated Practice Learning, over the course of your degree. This learning will mainly be in practice placements across Surrey, Sussex and Kent and the total hours enable you to meet the Nursing and Midwifery Council requirements for registration as a nurse.

Our flexible approach and excellent links with local healthcare organisations enable us to offer clinical placements in a range of hospital and community settings. When on placement you’ll work alongside a variety of multi-professional teams.

Most children receive healthcare in the community and our placements reflect this. We offer experience in schools, GP surgeries, the Healthy Child Programme (health visiting and school nursing), minor injury units, residential units, child development centres and children’s community nursing teams.

Hospital placements offer experience in wards, units and specialist departments within NHS district general hospitals and the Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital in Brighton.

Placements are usually 37.5 hours per week, and you will be supported by a practice supervisor and practice assessor. Shift times vary according to the setting, but shifts can be between 8-12.5 hours long and may include weekends and nights.

Placements take place across Sussex, Surrey and Kent and can include rural settings - you may need to travel for up to 90 minutes to your placement location. You will need to arrange your own transport to your placement but can claim for reimbursement of excess travel costs via the Travel and Dual Accommodation Expenses NHS bursary.

Supporting you

You will receive lots of support throughout your degree in children’s nursing. During your course you'll have access to:

• Academic Assessor
• Personal Academic Tutor
• Practice Liaison Lecturers
• Practice Supervisors and Practice Assessors in clinical practice
• Student Support and Guidance Tutor

Nursing Society
Our student-run Nursing Society provides support for all nursing students at every stage of their degree.

The society facilitates group learning and extracurricular lectures from speakers across the multidisciplinary team.

Study abroad

We are committed to providing a global perspective to nursing and midwifery education.

Nursing students currently have opportunities to participate in an international placement in Year 2 or Year 3. 

The experience is two to four weeks long and is managed by different reputable organisations in collaboration with the student. International placements are only with partners with which we have an agreement – this ensures a good quality learning opportunity and safe experience.

Locations include Tanzania, Nepal, Philippines and Mexico.

For an insight into what life is like on a study abroad placement, read Sabrina Barnes' experience in our student views section.

Meet the team

Alison Taylor - course leader

Alison is a registered children’s nurse and completed her Bachelor of Nursing in 1997.

She worked as a staff nurse at Birmingham Children’s Hospital before travelling to Australia to work on children’s wards in New South Wales, Northern Territory, Western Australia and Queensland.

Alison relocated to Brighton in 2003 and worked in clinical and practice development roles having developed an interest in nurse education. She completed a Postgraduate Certificate in Health and Social Care Education in 2010 and from 2012-2015 was involved in the University’s partnership work to launch the first paediatric nursing course in Zambia.

Alison completed her  Master's dissertation in 2014 on culturally safe approaches to health partnership work.

Alison continues to practise alongside her academic career.

Read Alison's full profile. 

Course fees

Additional funding support

UK students studying nursing, midwifery and some allied health professions subjects receive a non-repayable grant of at least £5,000 each academic year. Find out more on the NHS website.

The RKS Scholarship

The RKS Scholarship will fund one student’s annual fee of £9,250 for three years of undergraduate study (total value of £27,750). Applications need to be male or identify as male or non-binary and be a full-time student with a firm offer on a Podiatry BSc or Nursing (Adult or Child) BSc. They will need to be eligible to receive a full student finance package, a University of Brighton Bursary, Care Leaver’s Bursary or Estranged Student Bursary.

The fees listed here are for the first year of full-time study if you start your course in the academic year 2025–26.

You will pay fees for each year of your course. Some fees may increase each year.

UK undergraduate and some postgraduate fees are regulated by the UK government and increases will not be more than the maximum amount allowed. Course fees that are not regulated may increase each year by up to 5% or RPI (whichever is higher).

If you are studying part-time your fee will usually be calculated based on the number of modules that you take.

Find out more

• Brighton Boost – cost of living help for our new undergrad students. Find out about how we can help with your study, accommodation or travel costs and more...
• Fees, bursaries, scholarships and government funding info for UK and international undergraduate students
• Student finance and budgeting while studying
• Read our student contract and tuition fee policy (pdf) for more on University of Brighton tuition fees.

Campus where this course is taught

Accommodation

Local area

Maps

Support and wellbeing

Sport at Brighton