Continued Fall in Health Visitors, School and Learning Disabilities Nurses

While overall nurse numbers have increased the figures, published by NHS Digital, show efforts to boost nursing numbers have yet to make up for a general decline in the workforce, especially in mental health.

The monthly figures show that, as of July 2018, there were 282,661 full-time equivalent nurses and health visitors working in NHS hospitals and community services. This is an increase of 0.5% on the previous year – nearly 1,300 more full-time roles.