MS, Cabinet Secretary for
Health and Social Care: As part of our ongoing commitment to
train the NHS workforce of the future, I am pleased to announce I
am extending the current arrangements for the NHS Wales Bursary
scheme and retaining the package of support for students
starting in the 2025-26 academic year.
The NHS Wales Bursary has played an important role in
the package of financial support we provide to healthcare
students who train in Wales and subsequently commit to
work in the NHS in Wales for up to two years post-qualification.
This package of support covers both tuition fees and an element
towards living costs.
The NHS Bursary Scheme was introduced in 2017 and has been
administered by Health Education and Improvement Wales (HEIW)
since it was established in October 2018. We are very proud the
NHS Bursary has helped more than 15,300 healthcare students
complete their academic studies and enter the NHS workforce.
Changes made in the 2024-25 academic year have enabled eligible,
full-time, Welsh-domiciled students to access the full amount of
maintenance support, in addition to the NHS Bursary.
A public consultation regarding the NHS Wales Bursary will be
launched later this year. This will help us to understand the
incentives and conditions needed to continue to attract students
to study and work in Wales beyond graduation.
Through a combination of sustained investment in the provision of
healthcare professional education and training, and the continued
provision of financial support to encourage people to
consider healthcare in Wales as a worthwhile and rewarding
career, we continue to demonstrate a clear commitment to ensuring
the future sustainability of the NHS workforce.
