Occupational health nurse

Alternative titles for this job include

Occupational health nurses support the health and wellbeing of people at work.

Average salary (a year)

£32,000 Starter

to

£57,000 Experienced

Typical hours (a week)

37 to 40

You could work

evenings / weekends on a rota

How to become

Explore the different ways to get into this role.

How to become

You can get into this job through an apprenticeship or by working towards this role.

Apprenticeship

If you're a qualified registered nurse or midwife, you could do a Specialist Community Public Health Nurse Level 7 Degree Apprenticeship.

This takes up to 2 years to complete and is a mix of training at work and study at an accredited university.

Entry requirements

To do this apprenticeship, you'll need:

• to be a registered nurse

More Information

• search for apprenticeships on NHS Jobs

Work

You could apply to become an occupational health nurse if you're already a registered nurse and have the support of your employer.

You could take an approved programme in Specialist Community Public Health Nursing - Occupational Health Nursing (SCPHN - OHN).

Entry requirements for the programme can vary slightly between universities, so check with them for full details.

More Information

Registration

• you'll need to register with the Nursing and Midwifery Council

Further information

You can find out more about how to become an occupational health nurse from Health Careers.

What it takes

Find out what skills you’ll use in this role.

What it takes

Skills and knowledge

You'll need:

• knowledge of medicine and nursing
• a desire to help people
• sensitivity and understanding
• to be thorough and pay attention to detail
• the ability to work well with others
• thinking and reasoning skills
• knowledge of psychology
• excellent verbal communication skills
• to be able to use a computer and the main software packages competently

What you’ll do

Discover the day to day tasks you’ll do in this role.

What you'll do

Day-to-day tasks

As an occupational health nurse, you could:

• carry out pre-employment medical checks
• assess and treat employees who are injured or become ill at work
• help staff to manage conditions, such as hearing impairment or stress
• provide counselling and support
• recommend steps to employers to reduce staff sickness and absence
• carry out risk assessments
• design campaigns to promote health and wellbeing in the workplace
• work closely with managers, health and safety advisers and HR officers
• keep employee health records up to date

Working environment

You could work at a client's business or in an NHS or private hospital.

You may need to wear a uniform.

Career path and progression

Look at progression in this role and similar opportunities.

Career path and progression

With experience, you could:

• move into management and lead a team of occupational health staff or run an occupational health centre
• become self-employed and work as an occupational health consultant for businesses
• work for a private company
• complete professional development training to become an advanced practitioner, with more responsibility in clinical, leadership, education and research roles

Current opportunities

Find apprenticeships, courses and jobs available near you.

Current opportunities

Apprenticeships In England

We can't find any apprenticeship vacancies in England for an occupational health nurse right now.

The Find an apprenticeship service can help you with your search, send alerts when new apprenticeships become available and has advice on how to apply.

Courses In England

Access to HE - Nursing

• Provider: Harrow, Richmond & Uxbridge Colleges (HRUC)
• Start date: 09 September 2026
• Location: Harrow

Access to HE Diploma (Nursing)

• Provider: BOCK CONSULTANCY & PERSONNEL DEVELOPMENT LIMITED
• Start date: Flexible
• Location: Not known

Find courses near you

Jobs In the United Kingdom

The Find a job service can help you with your search for jobs and send alerts when new jobs become available.

Not what you're looking for?

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