BSc in Nursing - Learning Disability

Learning disability nurses can make a difference in the lives of people with learning disabilities and their families. Study learning disability nursing at one of the country’s largest nursing schools, with a 100% graduate employability rate, to gain all the knowledge and experience needed to fulfil the role of a learning disability nurse.

What's covered in this course?

Our aim is to develop you into a graduate nurse who is able to work flexibly across a range of settings and meet the health needs of the whole person throughout their lifespan. We will work with you on your development to help you become a skilled, knowledgeable, emotionally intelligent nurse, able to lead and co-ordinate compassionate, evidence-based, person- and family-centred care while working as an integral member of interdisciplinary teams.

The university-based elements of the first two years of your course are integrated, with all fields of nursing working together. In your final year, the theory you learn will be specific to learning disability nursing. You will study five modules each year. In year one, you will complete a year-long practice module which will prepare and support you to develop your confidence and competence in practice as you work towards independently leading and coordinating care.

In your first year, you will gain theoretical and practical knowledge to develop a range of key skills. This will include: exploring the evidence that underpins person- and family-centred care; professional values; self-leadership; and the role of the registered nurse. Second-year modules will further enhance your first-year learning and explore evidence-based complex care incorporating a wide range of research, skills, team leadership and principles of coordinating care. During your third year, you will continue to build on your previous learning and develop proficiency in learning disability nursing. The modules you study will develop you as a leader who uses research-informed critical thinking to coordinate care, supervise other health professionals and gain confidence in the safe management of medication. You will also have access to personal tuition throughout the course which will enrich your learning experiences and will enable you to reflect meaningfully on your practice and the development of your individual field identity.

Your practice placements will be specific to your field, learning disability nursing, throughout the three years. To help you become a more rounded nurse, you will also have opportunities to learn across the four fields of nursing. Your placement learning experiences may be within community, hospital or home environment settings and at a location anywhere within the West Midlands and potentially into neighbouring counties. While on placement you will be supported, supervised and assessed by practice and academic staff to develop your knowledge and skills.

We are committed to providing excellent, innovative, learning, teaching and assessment experiences through the use of technology, which we use to enhance your learning, through lectures, seminars, skills simulation and virtual learning. Engaging with practice partners and service users is also integral to our approach.

Our BSc (Hons) Nursing course has been designed to comply with the new Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) standards (2018) meaning that successful completion of this course makes you eligible to apply and be entered onto the NMC register in one of the four fields of nursing: Adult, Child, Learning Disabilities or Mental Health.

Why choose us?

1. Funding - Nursing students will receive at least £5,000 a year in additional funding for maintenance and associated study costs.
2. Experience different placement opportunities - benefit from our excellent relationships with medical institutions including the NHS and private, voluntary and independent sectors to carry out your work placements.
3. Birmingham is one of the UK’s most diverse cities outside of London, which provides you with a wide variety of placement experiences that will be valuable to take forward into your future career.
4. You will study at our recently extended £71 million City South Campus, complete with real-life hospital environments and simulation equipment so you can practice your practical skills at all times – not just on placement
5. We prepare you for practice and time on placement via live scenarios, encountering some of the most difficult situations in the safety of a practice environment, so that you feel confident and competent.
6. Student finance - have you already had a student loan to study for an undergraduate degree but would like to do a second degree in nursing, midwifery or the allied health professions? You may still be eligible for funding.

Year One

In order to fully complete this course and be eligible for application for entry onto the NMC register, a student must successfully achieve all 360 credits.

• What is Nursing?
• Assessing Needs and Planning Care
• Providing and Evaluating Care
• Introduction to Leadership and Teamwork
• Professional Practice 1

Year Two

• Complex Care 1: Assessing and Planning
• Complex Care 2: Providing and Evaluating Care
• Improving Quality and Safety in a Global Context
• Leadership and Co-ordinating Care
• Professional Practice 2

Year Three

• Nursing Care: Learning Disabilities
• Medicines Management and Applied Physiology in Learning Disabilities Nursing
• Leadership and Decision-Making in Learning Disabilities Nursing
• Delivering High Quality, Safe Nursing Care for People with Learning Disabilities
• Professional Practice 3

Employment opportunities

Once qualified and registered with the Nursing and Midwifery Council you can practice in the UK and many countries overseas. As a qualified nurse, you could find yourself working within:

• the NHS
• the private sector
• in the community
• at GP surgeries
• at schools
• Child and adolescent mental health services
• Older adults
• Dual diagnosis
• Specialist Housing Support
• specialist clinics
• community care
• forensic
• primary care
• prison
• health facilitation teams
• respite care
• Daycare
• Plus many more.

Placements

Placements take place across a range of settings. You may experience care in acute, long-term care and community settings which are related to your Field. During your second year, there will also be the opportunity to undertake a placement learning experience elsewhere in the UK or abroad* (*subject to selection criteria).

A placement is your chance to be a part of the working world of health and social care as it really is: the first taste of your career. For most of our courses, it's a compulsory part of your training; it's that important.

Placements help you with your confidence, by putting theory from the classroom into practice. We make sure you get a quality experience and that you're fully supported by a workplace mentor on hand throughout your placement.