NMC meets 17 of the PSA’s standards of good regulation in 2022-2023

For a fourth year, we have met 17 out the 18 Standards of Good Regulation as set out by the PSA. We’ve worked consistently over the past year to promote and uphold the high standards of nursing and midwifery practice the public has a right to expect. We’re pleased that these achievements have been recognised in the PSA’s latest report, including: 

• the quality of our engagement with stakeholders, with feedback describing us as collaborative, and being ‘open and receptive to ideas and suggestions’ 
• our updated pre-registration education standards, giving educators greater flexibility to deliver courses at the cutting edge of education 
• our ongoing work to address inequalities and disparities within our regulatory processes for people with different characteristics, including the second phase of our Ambitious for Change research 
• making changes to our English language requirements to ensure our processes are as fair and proportionate as possible.  

We know there’s still more to do and we’re glad the PSA has highlighted our ongoing work to ensure everyone, everywhere receives the safe, effective and kind care they have the right to expect. We’re proactively engaging with inquiries into failings in care, and continuing to offer support to anyone who may have a concern. For example, we recently launched our fitness to practise (FtP) referrals helpline which supports members of the public who are considering raising a concern.   

We haven’t met standard 15, which focuses on how quickly we conclude FtP cases. We’ve been open about the challenges presented by our high caseload, and reducing it remains our top priority. We’re making progress: the caseload has come down by 14 percent since April 2022, and the screening caseload is now at its lowest level since September 2020. We’ll continue to monitor and build on this progress in the coming months.  

As we work towards tackling our caseload and resolving cases more quickly, we’re also developing an ambitious programme to transform our professional regulation functions which begins this autumn with a small pilot team. The programme will draw on improvements to technology and will anticipate changes made possible by new legislation. It aims to provide the best possible service to those we work with - including those involved in FtP cases.  

Andrea Sutcliffe, NMC Chief Executive and Registrar, said: 

“I’m pleased that we’ve been able to meet 17 of the PSA’s standards, and it’s particularly encouraging to see such positive feedback from the partners we’ve worked with over the past year, for example when updating our English language requirements and pre-registration education standards. 

“I also welcome the PSA’s recognition of our work to address the fact that people from different backgrounds have different experiences of our regulatory processes, and of our proactive engagement with inquiries into failings in patient care. 

“It’s disappointing that we again haven’t been able to meet the standard on fitness to practise timeliness. As a result, people are waiting longer than they should for a decision, and I know this can be distressing for both members of the public raising concerns, and for the professionals those concerns are about.  

“While it’s encouraging that our caseload has reduced by 14 percent over the last year, there’s still more work to do. That’s why this remains our top priority - we’re continuing to make improvements and focus resources in this area so we can reach decisions on cases as quickly and safely as possible.” 

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