Intro

Studying a child nursing degree at Brighton enables you to work closely with children, young people and their families as part of a versatile team of health and social care professionals including including doctors, psychologists, physiotherapists and occupational therapists. You will learn how to tailor individual care for children with a range of clinical needs.

We will support you in becoming a caring and compassionate professional who delivers skilled, evidence-based care in partnership with patients, families and communities. Our focus on interdisciplinary enriches your experience while also preparing you for professional practice. You will also have the opportunity to experience nursing abroad through our international placements.

To ensure you can confidently apply theory to healthcare practice, you will spend 50% of your year on placements with local NHS trusts in a variety of healthcare settings and simulate nursing situations in our state of the art clinical skills and simulation suites.

Your teaching will be based at our Falmer campus and there are varied placements across Sussex in both acute and community settings.

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

This course starts in September each year.

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Key facts

Location Brighton: Falmer

UCAS code B730

Full-time 3 years

This course meets the NMC 2018 education standards and course graduates are eligible for registration

Apply now with UCAS for 2023

Course content

Course structure

You’ll share some modules with students on our other nursing degrees, allowing you to benefit from interprofessional collaboration, sharing knowledge and expertise. You will also benefit from patients contributing to your learning through shared stories.

In each year of the degree you engage with both theory and practice learning. The course alternates between academic terms and blocks of practice. Theory sessions in academic terms take place at the university. You will attend Monday to Friday with independent study days. Practice placement blocks are 32 hours per week and are eight and 10 weeks long.

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.

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Year 1

In year 1 you will explore the nature of nursing and develop your clinical and communication skills, which will be assessed in both the university and practice settings. You will also study the biological and behavioural sciences that inform nursing practice.

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).

students sitting in chairs

Year 2

You continue to build your skills and knowledge in professional practice. You will start to develop the principles of child nursing and gain an insight into the clinical settings in which nurses work such as public health, acute services, community and research.

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.
lecturer demonstrating to students

Final year

In your final year you will continue to specialise in children's nursing and focus on more complex patient and client needs. You will undertake a dissertation and will also begin to develop management and leadership skills as you prepare to enter professional practice.

Modules

  • Contemporary and Future Nursing Practice
  • Leading and Managing Nursing Care and Effective Teams
  • Children's Nursing in Context
  • Enhanced Physical Assessment of the Child
  • Practice Learning for Children’s Nursing Year 3.
students with a baby mannequin

Facilities

Clinical Skills and Simulation Suite

Clinical skills and simulation rooms provide an invaluable tool for assessment and monitoring students' progress throughout the course.

You will benefit from practising nursing skills in an environment that simulates nurses’ real-life professional experiences. Learning by simulation with state-of-the-art mannequins enables you to practice in a safe environment under supervision, so you can apply your knowledge and skills in professional practice with confidence.

We have skilled technicians on every campus to support you.

nursing suite

Nursing skills zone – practice independently in a safe environment

Our nursing skills zones are fully equipped open access areas where you can practice your skills at a time to suit you.

You can practice skills including ECG electrode application, sterile glove application, nutritional assessment, basic life support, aseptic technique, urinalysis, physical measurements, personal hygiene, catheterisation, peak flow measurement, administration of medicines, A-E assessment and physical assessment.

You can book a nursing PASS leader to help you in the skills zones. Our PASS (peer-assisted study sessions) project is a student-led scheme where you can discuss issues relating to your course material and student life informally with your peers and trained student facilitators.

Nursing skills zone

Flexible Learning Environment 

The Flexible Learning Environment is an adapted home environment in a residential location where you'll be able to practise skills and learn from other students while taking part in realistic training scenarios.

Every room is fitted with cameras and microphones, so that students can be directed and monitored from the control room while the observation room provides the opportunity to review, playback and debrief.

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Placements

Our flexible approach to practice-based learning and excellent links with local healthcare trusts enable us to offer clinical practice in a range of hospital and community settings, working alongside a variety of multi-professional teams.

You will spend 50% of the course studying theory which requires attendance in lectures and the other 50% on placement. You must accumulate 4,600 hours in total over the three years before you can register with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).

Practice placements are up to 32 hours per week and you will be supported by a mentor. Clinical placements take place across Sussex in locations including Hastings, Eastbourne, Brighton, Haywards Heath and Worthing.

Community placements offer experience in schools, doctors surgeries, with health visitors and community staff.

It is currently possible to claim back excess travel costs, this is reviewed each year by the NHS.

A day on placement can be between 07.00 and 22.00, some weekends and some nights.

Nursing placements map

Supporting you

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

  • personal tutor
  • practice liaison lecturers
  • mentors in clinical practice
  • PASS (Peer-assisted Study Sessions) nursing student leaders
  • student support and guidance
  • welfare.

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

Within the School of Sport and Health Sciences we are committed to providing a global perspective to nursing and midwifery education.

As such we offer a range of international English-speaking exchange placements to nursing, midwifery and paramedic science students. All of our international placements are fully supported and academically credited.

International placements are only with partners with which we have an agreement – this ensures a good quality learning opportunity and safe experience.

Europe

Active placement of up to three months in year 2 with our partner university:

  • Karel de Grote University College, Antwerp, Belgium

Two-week observational placement with one of 25 institutions across 13 European countries in our European Nursing Module Network. For more information on our European partners and network visit the European Nursing Module Network website.

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

Meet the team

Alan Monaghan
Alan has great enthusiasm for children’s nursing and for his subject area of acute child clinical practice and anatomy and physiology. He is renowned for the innovative and fun methods that he uses to teach students.

Alan started his nursing education at the University of Surrey in 1990. He also completed his post-registration course in children’s nursing and as a result has a dual qualification. Following his graduation he commenced a rotational post in Wessex Neurological Centre.
Next, Alan embarked upon children’s nursing, critical care training and subsequently became a Clinical Nurse Specialist at St George's London and the Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital Brighton.

Within this time he completed his Practice Teacher qualification and then continued to gain Teacher status with the Nursing and Midwifery Council. Alan is also the original author of the Brighton Paediatric Early Warning Score (PEWS) which has been implemented in countries such as USA, Canada, Brazil, China, Norway, Portugal and Italy

Alan successfully studied for a masters degree at the University of Brighton, and joined the School of Sport and Health Sciences in 2011.

Alan Monaghan

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Careers

Careers and employability 

Graduates will be eligible to apply for registration as a nurse with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) and are entitled to practice anywhere in the UK.

This course provides an excellent foundation for working in a range of health contexts and for further professional development in clinical practice, education, management and research.

Our children's nursing graduates have developed successful careers in both hospital and community settings. Many of our graduates leave university with a firm offer of employment from their sponsoring trust.

After a period of consolidation and further study you can work as a specialist practitioner in such fields as community children's nursing, health visiting, school nursing, or as a nurse practitioner. The hospital and community setting offers a range of roles caring for children and young people needing emergency, medical, surgical, high dependency, palliative, complex continuing care and neonatal care in hospitals and community settings.

Successful completion of the course will enable you to access further academic study at masters and doctoral level.

students with a child mannequin

Entry criteria

Flexible admissions

When you apply to Brighton we want to hear about who you are. Grades are never the whole picture; we're interested in things like creativity, resourcefulness, persistence and the capacity to think big and find new ways of doing things. And we recognise that not everyone has the same background. That's why we treat everyone who applies as an individual. We recognise many qualifications and we care about all of your achievements and the experiences you've had that set you apart.

Find out more

Graphic with the text 'Potential + possibility'

Entry requirements

UCAS tariff
112 points.

A-levels
BBC, must include a science or social science subject at grade B.

BTEC
DMM in a health or science subject. 

International Baccalaureate
28 overall with three subjects at Higher level.

Access to HE Diploma
pass with 60 credits overall. Health studies, nursing or science. At least 45 credits at level 3, with 18 credits at distinction and 27 credits at merit or above.

T-level
Merit in the Health, Healthcare Science or Science T-level. Other T-levels are not accepted.

GCSE (minimum grade C or grade 4)

  • with Access course – maths and English.
  • with A-levels, BTEC or K101 – at least three GCSEs including maths and English.

Functional Skills 2 will be accepted in lieu of GCSE English and maths.

If you do not have the required GCSEs find out which equivalent qualifications we accept instead.

A range of other qualifications will be considered on an individual basis, eg Open University K101 and K102.

For all nursing courses leading to registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) as a nurse, you must be able to 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 7-day cycle.

Foundation degree
Successful completion of our Health and Social Care Practice foundation degree  with 120 credits at level 5 may enable you to start in year 2 of our nursing degrees – Nursing (Adult), Nursing (Child) or  Nursing (Mental Health).

COVID-19 vaccine requirement

The COVID-19 vaccination requirement has been removed. Find out more about this decision.

Studied before or got relevant experience?
A qualification, HE credits or relevant experience may count towards your course at Brighton, and could mean that you do not have to take some elements of the course or can start in year 2.

Candidates are advised that places for entry into year 2 of this course are very limited. We normally welcome these applications but high demand for all nursing courses will restrict availability. 

Deferred applications
We are not able to accept applications for deferred entry onto this course. If you wish to apply for a later year of entry, we recommend waiting until the admissions cycle for that year opens – this is usually in October of each year.

Interviews
Students successful at the application stage will be invited to attend an interview.

Read our nursing application and interview tips.

Men are under-represented in many nursing and allied health professions in the UK. We are committed to helping address the balance and particularly welcome applications from male applicants.

Fees

Course fees

UK (full-time) 9,250 GBP

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.

What's included

You may have to pay additional costs during your studies. The cost of optional activities is not included in your tuition fee and you will need to meet this cost in addition to your fees. A summary of the costs that you may be expected to pay, and what is included in your fees, while studying a course in the School of Sport and Health Sciences in the 2022–23 academic year are listed here.

  • Where health course includes a placement
    • UK students – travel costs which are over and above your daily journey to university and dual accommodation costs may be reimbursed by the NHS learning support fund.
    • Overseas students are not covered by the NHS scheme, this means that any additional travel or accommodation costs for this course will be your responsibility. Travel to placement may be up to 90 mins each way/ travel on public transport at peak time cost, and you may incur additional accommodation and living costs if staying away from your usual home base for the length of your placement.
  • An initial set of specialist clothing and uniforms, where required, are included in the course fees.
  • DBS checks and occupational health checks, where required, are included in the fees.
  • Course books are available from the university but you may wish to budget up to £100 if buying your own copies.
  • In sport courses, UK-based field trips are available in some option modules in the final year. You do not have to take these option modules to complete the degree programme. Where a field trip is present costs are covered but you are expected to make a contribution towards food. Typically this is £50.
  • For sports courses which require a placement, you’ll be expected to pay for your living costs and travel. Physical Education (QTS teacher training) students can claim travel costs to their school placement.
  • The school runs a number of day trips which students do not pay for. There may be some food and drink costs and you should budget around £30 per year.

You can chat with our enquiries team if you have a question or need more information. Or check our finance pages for advice about funding and scholarships as well as more information about fees and advice on international and island fee-paying status.

Info

The fees listed here are for full-time courses beginning in the academic year 2023–24.

Further tuition fees are payable for each subsequent year of study and are subject to an annual increase of no more than 5% or RPI (whichever is the greater). The annual increase for UK students, who are subject to regulated fees, will increase no more than the statutory maximum fee.

You can find out more about our fees in the university's student contract and tuition fee policy (pdf).

The tuition fee you have to pay depends on a number of factors including the kind of course you take, and whether you study full-time or part-time. If you are studying part-time you will normally be charged on a pro rata basis depending on the number of modules you take.

Location and student life

Campus where this course is taught

Falmer campus

Set in the South Downs, our Falmer campus is around four miles from Brighton city centre. 7,000 students are based here taking subjects including criminology, English, education, nursing and medicine, paramedic science, psychology and sociology. Brighton and Hove Albion's Amex stadium and beautiful Stanmer Park are right next door.

Specialist learning facilities at Falmer include the curriculum centre used by teaching and education students, which houses over 30,000 teaching resources and clinical skills and simulation suites used by health students. Psychology students learn in our applied cognition and flexible creative method labs.

Falmer campus has two halls of residence on site, as well as a library, restaurant, cafes, and a students' union shop and bar.

The campus sports centre has a fitness suite, activity studios and a sports hall. There is also a floodlit astroturf football pitch, netball and tennis courts.

Cycle lanes link Falmer with our other campuses and the city centre. There are regular bus services to the city centre and other campuses. Falmer train station is right next to campus and a nine minute journey to central Brighton.

Newly refurbished atrium in the Checkland Building

Accommodation

Brighton: Falmer

We guarantee an offer of a place in halls of residence to all eligible students.

Halls of residence
We have halls of residence across Brighton in the city centre, Moulsecoomb, Varley Park and Falmer.

  • You'll be prioritised for accommodation in the halls that are linked to your teaching base, subject to availability.
  • Falmer campus is linked to the halls on Falmer campus and at Varley Park. All halls are self-catered.
    • Paddock Field and Great Wilkins halls are on Falmer campus and offer a range of rooms
    • Varley Park offers a mix of rooms. It is around two miles from Moulsecoomb campus and four miles from the city centre. Public transport in the city is excellent.

Private renting
There's plenty of support if you opt for private renting. This is an option which offers choice and flexibility – enabling you to choose where you live and who with. Every summer we provide online events and resources, as well as other advice services, for students looking for a place to live and people to share with.

Outside views at Falmer accommodation

Outside views at Falmer accommodation

Extensive facilities at Falmer sports centre

Extensive facilities at Falmer sports centre

Students dining at Westlain

Students dining at Westlain

Local area

About Brighton

The University of Brighton is at the heart of our city's reputation as a welcoming, forward-thinking place which leads the way when it comes to the arts, music, sustainability and creative technology. Brighton is home to a thriving creative community and a digital sector worth £1bn a year to the local economy, as much as tourism.

Many of the work-based learning opportunities offered on our courses such as placements and guest lectures are provided by businesses and organisations based in the city.

You can also get involved with city festivals and events such as the Brighton Festival, the Fringe, Brighton Digital Festival, Brighton Science Festival, the London to Brighton bike ride, and the Great Escape festival of new music to name but a few. Other annual highlights include Pride, the Brighton Marathon, and Burning the Clocks which marks the winter solstice.

You'll find living in Brighton enriches your learning experience and by the end of your course you will still be finding new things to explore and inspire you.

It's only 50 minutes by train from Brighton to central London and less than 40 minutes to Eastbourne. There are also daily direct trains to Bristol, Bedford, Cambridge, Gatwick Airport, Portsmouth and Southampton.

Map showing distance to London from Brighton
Brighton Beach sunset

Maps

Falmer campus

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Support and wellbeing

Your course team

Your personal academic tutor, course leader and other tutors are all there to help you with your personal and academic progress. You'll also have a student support and guidance tutor (SSGT) who can help with everything from homesickness, managing stress or accommodation issues.

Your academic skills

Our Brighton Student Skills Hub gives you extra support and resources to develop the skills you'll need for university study, whatever your level of experience so far.

Your mental health and wellbeing

As well as being supported to succeed, we want you to feel good too. You'll be part of a community that builds you up, with lots of ways to connect with one another, as well having access to dedicated experts if you need them. Find out more.

Students talking in a social area

Sport at Brighton

Sport Brighton

Sport Brighton brings together our sport and recreation services. As a Brighton student you'll have use of sport and fitness facilities across all our campuses and there are opportunities to play for fun, fitness or take part in serious competition. 

Find out more about Sport Brighton.

Sports scholarships

Our sports scholarship scheme is designed to help students develop their full sporting potential to train and compete at the highest level. We offer scholarships for elite athletes, elite disabled athletes and talented sports performers.

Find out more about sport scholarships.

Students playing frisbee

Student views  

Maddie Allam

I LOVE the course; I couldn’t have chosen anything better to do.

The best part about the course is definitely going to placements, you learn so much more being on the wards and in the community where you can begin to hone your skills. It can be so rewarding. 

Being on the wards within a hospital has helped me to really understand what it is a nurse does. I was only 18 when I started the course and I had never been in a hospital, and never worked in healthcare of any kind, so it reinforced what I would be doing.

The sessions where we talk to our senior lecturers about our experiences and reflect on them are great as we learn from each other about how we could do better next time to improve our skill set.

The mentors have helped me so much that I would like to eventually become a mentor and help other students too, and possibly do my masters, but this is a long way in the future I think!

Maddie Allam

Lenka Huntley

Since I was a child, I was always attracted to and fascinated by healthcare. My life journey though took me elsewhere and I became a language teacher instead. However, reconsidering my career options during a long maternity break, I was drawn back to the medical field.

I applied for child nursing at Brighton even though I knew that the competition for places was tough. I was nearly 46 then and I had a five-year-old. When I was accepted on the course I was over the moon.

It was hard at first getting used to studying again while also looking after my family. But it was all worth it and even though writing assignments is daunting, I love my placements. In fact, I have yet to meet a student on my course who does not love being on placement.

Since placements constitute 50% of the course, this is quite important. Brighton has excellent links with local healthcare services and provide us students with a variety of placements in both acute and community settings that give us fantastic opportunities for interdisciplinary learning. It also shows us different areas of nursing and all the possibilities that are there for us when we qualify.

The best thing about this course apart from being interesting and inspiring is that I feel I can easily walk into a job straight after graduating. The career prospects in nursing are endless and it is only up to you which path you choose to take.

Child nursing student Lenka in her uniform

Sabrina Barnes

"I was lucky enough to spend two weeks in Kathmandu, Nepal on placement  in three different paediatric wards; general medicine and surgery, neonatal intensive care and paediatric intensive care. In this time, I was able to learn how different the Nepali culture was and both the differences and similarities between nursing in Nepal and the UK. 

"I was also able to learn a lot about myself and my own nursing practice and share some of my experiences with the Nepali nurses. I had never travelled alone before so even before I got to Nepal, I had done something new and when I got there, I was able to meet lots of other nurses doing exchange placements from across the world. This enabled me to learn about other people’s experiences of healthcare and I also met friends that I went travelling with recently to Pokhara, Nepal.

"My experience in Nepal taught me a lot about family centred care and I have been able to take this in with my nursing practice as a qualified nurse. In particular my time on the intensive care unit in combination with my second year placement on HDU, inspired the title of my dissertation, which had a focus on supporting family involvement in intensive care environments."

Sabrina Barnes in Nepal

Stay in touch

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Ask a question about this course

If you have a question about this course, our enquiries team will be happy to help.

01273 644644


Keep up to date at our health sciences blog.

Statistics

Find out more about how the academic year and degree courses are organised, and about learning and assessment activities you might get to grips with at Brighton. More specific information about this course is detailed in the programme specification (linked below). You can find out also about the support we offer to help you adjust to university life.

Course and module descriptions on this page were accurate when first published and are the basis of the course. Detailed information on any changes we make to modules and learning and assessment activities will be sent to all students by email before enrolment, so that you have all the information before you come to Brighton.

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Programme specification

The programme specification is the approved description of each course. They give a detailed breakdown of the content and structure of the course, and are updated following course changes.

Programme specification

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