Degree reapproved to deliver great learning for Midwifery students

Students at the University can rest assured their learning experience will continue to give them all they need to be a ‘marvellous midwife’ following a gold star review by a national health body.

The University’s programme undergoes periodic reviews with regulator the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) regularly to ensure the programme enable students to graduate with the knowledge, skills, competencies and attributes required to become a midwife.

Due to pandemic restrictions, the review panels were held virtually this year and included members from the NMC, senior academics from the Midwifery team and midwifery experts from outside UON.

The panel met with UON student midwives, maternity service user members of the Faculty of Health, Education and Society’s Patient and Public Involvement group and colleagues from clinical practice placement. And the feedback was uniformly positive.

Commendations from the panel include, for the current Midwifery programme:

• The Midwifery team’s approach to embedding the Changemaker ethos in the curriculum.
• The Faculty of Health, Education and Society’s project for capturing the student voice.
• The Midwifery team’s adoption of the Lecturer in Practice model to support students.

And, for the September 2021 (onwards) programme:

• The evident depth of consultation and engagement by the UON Midwifery team with all stakeholder groups (students, service users and practice learning partners) in planning the new programme, particularly engendering the consistency of approach across the three NHS partners.
• The holistic approach to student support and evidence of positive impact on the student experience.
• The UON midwifery team’s commitment to the service users and carers’ group, who are clearly a major asset to both the students and the programme.

Dr Claire Clews, Lead Midwife for Education and Professional Midwifery Lead at UON said: “The team were delighted to receive panel members and to showcase for them all that we do here to educate and support the midwifery professionals of the future. Naturally, we are also happy to read their comments following the successful review of our programmes.

“This panel review also demonstrates how important the student voice is. From the development of the programme, to the recruitment of future students, they are always at the heart of what we do at UON.”

This official stamp of approval follows other recent additions over the past two years that will add significant benefits to students’ learning experience.

These include becoming part of UON’s interprofessional approach to education that sees Midwifery students learning more about other health professionals they will work alongside once qualified.

Members of UNICEF visited the University to assess provision of Baby Friendly Initiative (BFI) training at Waterside, reaccrediting BFI in 2018 meaning midwifery students will continue to gain key skills that will enhance their employability and the care they give.

Follow the team’s activities and conversations on their Twitter and Instagram channels.

Find out more about the Midwifery (BSc) degree at the University of Northampton.