Imagine working a 40-hour week, delivering frontline care in hospitals, clinics, and communities - only to finish your shift and realise you've actually lost money.
For thousands of nursing and healthcare students across the UK, this is the daily reality of mandatory placements.
The 2,300-hour toll
To qualify as a nurse or midwife, students must complete a minimum of 2,300 hours of clinical placement. That's over 700 hours every year where students perform the same vital work as paid NHS staff.
The catch? It's entirely unpaid.
While students keep wards running, they're also:
- Paying full tuition fees.
- Self-funding placement costs, including travel, parking, uniforms, and meals.
- Sacrificing income, as demanding schedules and Nursing and Midwifery Council hour caps make earning a living nearly impossible.
Why this matters to every student
This isn't just a healthcare issue; it's about equality in education. When thousands of hours of unpaid labour are a requirement for a degree, the profession becomes a privilege reserved for those who can afford it.
The current system prices out talented students, particularly from lower-income backgrounds, worsening the NHS staffing crisis before they even graduate.
Pay the Placement
The Pay the Placement campaign, led by Essex SU, is demanding an end to unpaid labour in healthcare education.
We're calling for:
- Paid placements: All nursing and healthcare students to be paid for their placements, because real work deserves real pay.
- National change: A full review of healthcare student funding; the system is broken, and it's time for the government to fix it.
- Better support for healthcare students during training.
How to get involved
The NHS relies on student labour, and it's time the government recognised that value.
- Sign the petition: Add your voice to the thousands demanding national reform. Petition closes 20 May 2026.
- Write to your MP: Use the following template to tell your local representative why this is unsustainable.
Template MP Letter
Re: Campaign to Support Nursing Students - Fairer Placement Conditions
Dear [MP's Name],
I am writing to you as a student of Sheffield Hallam University to request that you assist Hallam Students' Union in advocating for improved conditions for nursing students undertaking clinical placements.
As it stands, nursing students are required to complete a minimum of 2,300 hours of unpaid clinical placements as part of their degree. These placements are vital for their training, but the demanding workload combined with academic commitments places many students under serious financial and emotional strain.
We believe this system needs reform.
This campaign is calling for major change - to pay students for placement hours or to reduce the number of required placement hours. We believe this approach not only recognises the significant contribution that nursing students make during their training but also helps to attract and retain qualified nurses.
Many of our nursing students are balancing intense unpaid placements with part-time jobs, family responsibilities, and rising living costs. Without these changes, we are not only putting the progress and wellbeing of current nursing students at risk, but actively driving many talented, compassionate individuals away from the profession altogether.
We would greatly appreciate your support in championing this issue in Parliament and with relevant ministers, and for recognising the vital role students play in the future of our NHS.
Yours sincerely,
[Your Name]
Useful info: Sheffield Central's MP is Abtisam Mohamed (abtisam.mohamed.mp@parliament.uk).
We'll be at Collegiate's HOTC on Tuesday 12 May and Thursday 14 May, 10:30am-2pm. Stop by for a chat or more information.
Your support will contribute to pushing for government action, improved funding, and fairer access to placement-based courses.