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School nurse

Alternative titles for this job include Specialist community public health nurse

School nurses work with schools and families to improve the health and wellbeing of children and young people.

Average salary (a year)

£30,000 Starter

to

£53,000 Experienced

Typical hours (a week)

38 to 40 variable

You could work

between 8am and 6pm

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 might be able to do a Specialist Community Public Health Nurse Level 7 Degree Apprenticeship.

This usually takes a year and 6 months to complete and is a mix of learning at work and study at an accredited university.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • to be a registered nurse

More Information

Work

You can apply to become a school nurse if you're a registered nurse or midwife.

You'll usually need to do an approved programme in Specialist Community Public Health Nursing - School Nursing. 

This approved programme can take 1 to 2 years to complete.

More Information

Registration

Career tips

You might have an advantage when applying for courses or jobs if you have:

  • experience in health promotion or working with children in the community
  • knowledge of child protection and family planning issues
  • an understanding of school children's health needs

Further information

You can find out more about how to become a school 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 practices
  • patience and the ability to remain calm in stressful situations
  • the ability to accept criticism and work well under pressure
  • sensitivity and understanding
  • a desire to help people
  • the ability to work well with others
  • to be thorough and pay attention to detail
  • excellent verbal communication skills
  • to be able to use a computer and the main software packages competently

Restrictions and Requirements

You'll need to:

You'll usually need a driving licence for this job.

What you’ll do

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

What you'll do

Day-to-day tasks

In this role you could:

  • raise awareness of health issues like smoking and drugs
  • promote healthy living, including sex and health education
  • give immunisations, vaccinations and carry out screenings
  • train teachers on healthcare issues and advise on school health policy
  • support children with medical needs like asthma, diabetes, epilepsy or mental health issues

Working environment

You could work at a school, at a pupil referral unit, in the community or at a college.

Career path and progression

Look at progression in this role and similar opportunities.

Career path and progression

With experience you could:

  • become a team manager or community matron
  • become a manager of a service
  • work in education or research

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 a school 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 2025
  • Location: Harrow

Access to HE Diploma (Nursing)

  • Provider: MACCLESFIELD COLLEGE
  • Start date: 08 September 2025
  • Location: Macclesfield
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.

Search further careers

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Skills assessment

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