Nurse and midwife workforce is more diverse than ever

Nursing and midwifery workforces are more diverse than ever, according to their regulator the Nursing and Midwifery Council. More than a third come from black, Asian, and from ethnic minority backgrounds.

Out of nearly 868,000 nurses and midwives in the UK, almost 294,000 (33.8%) are from such backgrounds.

The overall register of nurses and midwives has reached a new high, according to the regulator, although the growth has roughly halved between the years 2024-25 (+3.3%) and 2025-26 (+1.7%).

While the number of UK-educated professionals joining the register fell by 4.9%, there has also been a fall in international joiners. At its peak in 2023-24, 49.4% of all joiners were internationally educated, this fell to 39.1% in 2024-25 and dropped again to 26.4% in 2025-26.

The slow growth is mainly due to a significant fall in the number of people joining the register and an increase in those leaving. In 2025-26, a total of 41,542 professionals joined for the first time, which is 21.4% less than the year before (52,833). Meanwhile, there were 30,323 leavers, an increase of 5.3% on 2024-25.

The NMC’s annual leavers’ survey showed the top three reasons for leaving the register continue to be retirement, physical or mental health, and burnout or exhaustion.

The data showed that UK-educated joiners are becoming more ethnically diverse, as last year 35% of new UK joiners were black, Asian and ethnic minority people, which is 12.7 percentage points higher than in the 12 months to March 2021 (22.3%).

This report comes at a time when many ethnic minority nurses and midwifery professionals are experiencing more racism while delivering frontline care.

The NMC said that racism and other forms of discrimination have no place in health and care, and it is incumbent on the regulator to play its part in confronting racist stereotypes and everyday biases that persist in the sector.

The NMC is encouraging UK employers to embed its new anti-racism principles for midwifery and nursing education and practice.

Last month, Lord Mann recommended that political symbols and badges should be banned in the NHS as part of his review into antisemitism and racism n the health service.

Emma Westcott, executive director of strategy and insight at the NMC, said: “The total nursing and midwifery workforce is now larger and more ethnically diverse than ever. The 293,778 Black, Asian and ethnic minority professionals on the NMC Register are essential to the delivery of the safe and effective care we all rely on.

“That’s why it’s more important than ever that our professions can practise without exposure to racism or discrimination. We have recently published anti-racism principles for education and practice, and we’re consulting shortly on a revised Code with clearer expectations that all nursing and midwifery professionals recognise, challenge and disrupt racism.”

Further data showed that India remains the largest source of international joiners, with 4,215 joiners in 2025-26. Nigeria is the second largest, with 1,614 joiners, followed by Ghana, with 1,391 joiners. For the first time since 2015-16, the Philippines is not one of the top three sources of international joiners.

This means that two of the three biggest sources of international joiners to the UK’s nursing and midwifery workforce, Nigeria and Ghana, are “red list” countries, where active recruitment is prohibited by the UK government’s code of practice.

Westcott added: “We also call on employers to continue adhering to the government’s ethical code of recruitment, since two of the top three countries of education outside the UK are on the ‘red list’. While professionals from across the world want to come and work in UK health and care, and we welcome their contribution, we don’t want to undermine health systems in countries with the biggest workforce challenges.”

Caroline Waterfield, director of workforce supply and employment practice at NHS Employers, said: “ With over a third of professionals on the register from a BAME background and in light of Lord Mann’s findings in his report on ‘tackling antisemitism and all forms of racism in the NHS and healthcare regulatory system’, the NMC data showed the importance of anti-racism work being core to the NMC’s activity.

“We call on the NMC to work with NHS employers and other regulators and partners on this important work, and go further to show how the NMC’s systems and processes are being adapted to ensure they are fair, inclusive and free from discrimination.”

Waterfield added: “It is important to note the significant drop in internationally educated registrants. This reflects the fact that NHS employers are not pursuing active recruitment campaigns abroad and are focused on supporting UK graduates to find employment and nursing professionals who have joined from abroad in recent years to be able to stay.

“The government’s future immigration plans should not penalise NHS staff already in the UK working hard to deliver health and care.”