Thinking of returning to nursing? Your skills and experience are needed more than ever before, and there has never been a better time to return to nursing and it is easier than you might think.

The Return to Practice Programme

The Return to Practice Programme prepares you for re-entry into the professional register and is an essential requirement for returning to nursing and regaining registration. The programme will refresh your skills, leaving you ready to return to nursing with confidence. It involves a combination of classroom and placement-based learning, so you can get stuck in right from the start.

Watch this short video "Once a nurse, always a nurse", where returners Sharon, Damian and Gertrude speak about their journeys back to nursing.

The Return to Practice programme offers nurses with a lapsed registration an opportunity to become active again on the NMC register with a view that this will lead to employment as a registered nurse. Please read this guide to help you understand the programme.

Watch We Are Returning Nurses (Bridget's story)

How to apply

Led by supportive tutors, assessors and supervisors, there are 4 University programmes available across London, all created to refresh your nursing skills so that you’re ready to return to practice. Please click on the links below to be taken to the University websites to find out more about the programmes and how to apply:

• Greenwich University
• Kingston and St Georges
• City University
• University of Hertfordshire

Here at Southwest London & St George’s Mental Health Trust we offer placements at our Springfield and Tolworth Hospital sites, and you will be supported in your placements to achieve all the required proficiencies.

If you are looking to return to a Mental Health Nursing or Learning Disability Nursing, please contact the University to ensure they offer the programme you require.

Financial support for your studies   

You won’t just be emotionally supported; you’ll be financially supported too. NHS Health Education England (HEE) will provide funding towards your course fees. You’ll also either be given a bursary to help cover any childcare, travel, and book costs, or you will be paid a salary, depending on the route you take to return. 

Key Contacts

If you would like to find out more information about returning to practice, please email:

South West London Return to Practice Lead: khft.rtpswl@nhs.net

 The student experience team at Southwest London & St George’s Mental Health Trust: StudentExperience@swlstg.nhs.uk   

Or returntopractice.london@hee.nhs.uk

The Trust along with all NHS providers and primary care services within South West London prescribe in line with the South West London  (SWL) Joint Medicines Formulary. The SWL formulary aims to recommend clinically effective, safe and economic medicines for use in both primary and secondary care. A joint formulary across both primary and secondary care supports prescribing across the hospital and primary care interface, to ensure consistency in prescribing and continuity in patient care.

For full details about which medicines are approved for use please see the South West London Joint Medicines Formulary. This is used with other resources, such as the British National Formulary, product summaries, and prescribing guidelines, to ensure the safe and appropriate prescribing of medicines.

How medicines are approved

The Medicines Formulary is approved by a Joint Formulary Committee (JFC), which meets monthly. The JFC manages the introduction of new medicines across SWL.

The SWL JFC is made up of representatives from:

• Croydon University Hospital
• Epsom & St Helier Hospital
• Kingston Hospital
• St Georges hospital
• SWL & St Georges Mental health trust
• South West London Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG)

Its members include Consultants, GPs and pharmacists.

Medicines recommended in a technology appraisal for use by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) are automatically included. Proposals to include other medicines require a consultant medical or non-medical prescriber, employed on a permanent basis in a SWL provider organisation within the Integrated Care Service (ICS), or clinicians working as part of a SWL clinical network to make an application for the medicine to be considered.

Use of medicines outside the formulary

On occasion it may be suitable for a medicine to be prescribed which is not on the formulary.

Each Trust has a non-formulary application process which clinicians can use if they consider a non-formulary medicine to be the only suitable option for an individual where formulary medicines have been exhausted or are contra-indicated.

All non-formulary requests will be reviewed and assessed on an individual basis.

Where a non-formulary medication has been approved for use it may be appropriate for this to be prescribed in primary care under an individual care plan once the patient has been stabilised.

Our digital vision

In 2022 the Trust be launching our new 5 Year Digital Strategy, which will shape the direction of transformation for the Trust. The key theme of the Digital Strategy is digital inclusivity and codesign - so we need you to support us in outlining the key priorities and digital ambitions of the Trust and address the ways in which they can be achieved.

What do we mean by ‘digital?’ 

When we talk about Digital, we are referring to the various elements of technology that might be used to make your experience of using our services better. An example of this can range from video consultations to online appointment-bookings to mobile apps.

Our scope is broad, and your experience of digital may be different to that of your colleagues. For instance, you might have views on how we can manage our data better, or alternatively you might have views on the latest clinical systems, and we are keen to hear all aspects as we look to capture vital insights that will enable us to harness the power of digital to improve patient and staff experience across the Trust.

We are keen to capture the views of our colleagues so that the strategy codesigned with staff, stakeholders and service users.

A survey for service users, carers and residents can be found here – please do share these accordingly.

In addition to this survey, as the Strategy emerges, we will be keeping communication channels open and continuing to engage across the organisation, so there will be further opportunities for you to contribute to the Digital Strategy and direction of travel for the Trust.