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Leadership Scholarships for nurses and midwives

Florence Nightingale Foundation’s Leadership Scholarships are a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to develop your nursing or midwifery career whilst improving clinical and health outcomes. They are open to nurses and midwives working at NHS Agenda for Change (or equivalent) band 7 and above.

Scholars follow an in-depth personal development plan with experiential learning and individual assessments throughout.

We are on hand to support scholars throughout the process. And they also have an experienced mentor and access to fellow scholars for support.

Whether you are looking for the next step, investigating the opportunity to become a future director, aspiring to engage more with the executive board, have dreams of engaging in a systems leadership role or have reached a senior position and are looking to stretch and develop yourself beyond your previous expectations, this opportunity is perfect.

Opportunities

Our Scholarships begin each year in May and run part-time, for approximately 18 months. Applications for our 2025-2026 Scholarships are now open. Find out more and apply at the link below. Deadline for applications is 4 November.

Open

Leadership Scholarships 2025-26

  • A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to develop your nursing or midwifery career whilst improving clinical and health outcomes
  • Various development programmes and bespoke opportunities
  • Continuous improvement project
  • Experienced mentor allocated

Applications open: 25 September – 4 November 2024

Programme dates: May 2025 – October 2026

More information

Open to: Nurses and midwives Band 7 and above

Location: Virtual and London

Cost: Funded (apart from travel, some accommodation and expenses)

Read more

Programme Structure

The Scholarship programme includes:

  • Individual coaching including feedback on results of psychometric assessments.
  • Experienced mentor allocated.
  • Welcome briefing day.
  • Leadership development programme (2 days residential) delivered by The Kings Fund.
  • Personal Presence and Impact (3 days) delivered by the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA).
  • Bespoke Development Opportunities.
  • Invite to the Florence Nightingale Commemorative Service at Westminster Abbey, London.
  • High-profile celebration event to celebrate the success of our FNF Scholars.

Benefits for employers

  • Improvement in patient and health outcomes.
  • Retention of staff – Scholars stay in healthcare.
  • Positive impact on the team and beneficial for staff engagement.
  • Enabler of succession planning.
  • Recognition of employers commitment to leadership development and succession planning.

Benefits for funders

  • Contribute to improving clinical and health outcomes and impact patient care.
  • Social responsibility to secure the nursing and midwifery leaders of the future.
  • Raise the profile of nursing and midwifery.
  • Securing Florence Nightingale’s legacy.

Previous and current funders include

Dementia UK
The Company of Nurses
NHS England
National Clinical Leaership Centre for Nursing and Midwifery
Burdett Trust
Welsh NHS
Health Education England

Our Scholarships are developed and delivered in partnership with highly reputable and renowned partners including:

Partners

Eden and Partners
RADA
Windsor Leadership
The King's Fund
Hart Ridge Consulting

Realise your potential with the Florence Nightingale Foundation

Career development

Career development

A significant number of Scholars are promoted into more senior roles within 2 years of the Scholarship. In a recent survey, 95% of Scholars identified that their Scholarship had a positive impact on their career.

Impact policy and practice

Impact policy and practice

Scholars report the positive impact they have on leading teams and improving patient care and health outcomes. In a recent survey, 82.5% of leaderships Scholars identified that they made an impact to health and social care policy and practice.

Personal development

Personal development catered to you

Our Scholarship programmes focus on facilitated learning. An in-depth personal development plan will be followed throughout the programme with planned experiential learning and individual assessments throughout.

Support from the foundation

Support from the Foundation

The Foundation are on-hand to support you throughout the Scholarship process. You will also have an experienced mentor and have access to your fellow Scholars for support.

Network

Network with like-minded nurses and midwives

Scholars are now part of a growing Alumni network (over 600) providing on-going support and in some cases, friends for life.

Passionate about nursing and midwifery

Passionate about nursing and midwifery

Scholars choose to remain in their profession as a direct result of the Scholarship and are passionate about sharing their knowledge and evidence-based approaches and go on to inspire others to apply for future Scholarships.

New Knowledge

New knowledge through evidence-based approaches

Like Florence, Scholars will work on evidence-based approaches and use and share their new knowledge to impact patients and lead changes in policy and practice.

Life-changing

Be part of a 'life-changing' experience

Scholars report the “life changing” Scholarship experience and its professional and personal impact. Scholars are encouraged to explore and discover personal leadership styles and develop essential tools on how to ignite change. Scholars report feeling more confident to speak out and influence improvements in patient care and health outcomes.

9/10

of Scholars rated the overall Scholarship experience as excellent

95 %

of Scholars identified that their Scholarship had a positive impact on their career

80+

Scholarships awarded by the Foundation every year

Current FNF Scholarship Programme Participants

If you are currently undertaking an FNF Scholarship you can access your private learning resources and community in the Academy.

Stay updated!

We are supporting nurses and midwives to make a difference – keep informed of our progress and how you can become part of the transformation.

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