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Specialist Community Public Health Nurse

Health Visiting or School Nursing
PGDip
Duration
1 year
Start
September 2025
Delivery
In-person

As a registered nurse or midwife this course meets the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) professional standards for specialist community public health nurses (Health Visiting or School Nursing). It can also lead to a new and rewarding career in public health nursing.

Why study with us

  • You can register as a Specialist Community Public Health Nurse on the third part of the Nursing and Midwifery register.
  • And, as the course is mapped to the NHS Knowledge and Skills Framework, it will help with career progression.
  • The course promotes independent, shared and autonomous learning developing you as a specialist community public health nurse.
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What you'll do

  • You’ll develop your professional proficiency underpinned by sound, evidence based theoretical knowledge, within the practice of specialist community public health nursing.
  • You’ll cover the four principles of public health practice; the search for, and stimulating awareness, of health needs, policies and health needs and health enhancing activities.
  • It’s 50 percent theory and 50 percent practice and you’ll be assessed in a number of ways.

Modules

Please note modules will vary depending on your chosen pathway.

Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of our published course information. However, our programmes are subject to ongoing review and development. Changing circumstances may cause alteration to, or the cancellation of, courses. Changes may be necessary to comply with the requirements of accrediting bodies or revisions to subject benchmarks statements. As well as to keep courses updated and contemporary, or as a result of student feedback. We reserve the right to make variations if we consider such action to be necessary or in the best interests of students.

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Academic expertise

Angela Mason
Senior Lecturer

Accreditations

Future careers

As a Specialist Community Public Health Nurse you’ll be equipped to develop your role as a clinician, educator, manager and leader, proactively meeting changing public healthcare needs. 

Entry requirements

Access to this course is dependent on a successful application and interview process via two routes.

Internal recruitment

If you work for NHS you can be seconded by your Trust, and you’ll need to apply via them. Contact your Trust Professional Development Manager for more information. Interviews by the Trust and the University take place over two days each year.

External recruitment 

You can be sponsored by an NHS Trust for which you don’t work too. Please see and apply via the relevant Trust website. These courses are also advertised on the NHS Jobs website at - www.jobs.nhs.uk

External interviews take place each year, after internal recruitment has taken place.

  • All applicants must meet the following criteria:
  • Have an active registration as a Nurse (Level 1) and/or a registered Midwife of the Nursing and Midwifery Council register (NMC). Applicants must have registered as a Nurse or Midwife with the NMC before they can apply and those who have not yet got their pin are not eligible to apply
  • Demonstrate capability of safe and effective practice at the level of proficiency appropriate to the NMC approved SCPHN entry requirements. The University and practice partner will assess that the applicant has the relevant professional experience and is capable of safe and effective practice within chosen pathway
  • A BSc Honours Degree or Diploma. If Diploma level, applicants need to be enrolled on a Level 6 module prior to application and successfully completed the module prior to starting on the SCPHN course
  • Identified a qualified SCPHN practitioner as their supervisor and assessor who is registered in the relevant discipline
  • Acceptance is subject to a satisfactory up to date DBS
  • In addition to the above requirements, applicants who are self-funded, non-NHS or self-employed are required to identify a practice placement, practice supervisor and a practice assessor prior to applying. In this situation the appropriateness of the applicants placement for undertaking the course will be considered and discussed with the student and practice assessor/supervisor at the point of application. Please contact the course leader for further information if you are a self-funded applicant

This course will involve you working with vulnerable groups of individuals, this may include children. In order to ensure that the University offers places on their programmes to suitable candidates you will be required to obtain a satisfactory Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service clearance (formerly termed CRB).

Scholarships and bursaries

We have a wide range of bursaries, scholarships and funds available to help support you whilst studying with us.

Select your country to see eligibility information and how to apply by selecting more info on the cards below.

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This course is delivered by the School of Nursing and Midwifery

For information on possible changes to course information, see our essential and important course information

You can find regulations and policies relating to student life at the University of Central Lancashire on our student contract page