Learning Disabilities Nursing

As a learning disabilities nurse, you’ll provide the specialist assessment, treatment, care and support to enable children, young people and adults facing a range of physical and mental challenges to lead a fulfilling life as independently as possible.

Validated by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), our Bachelor of Learning Disabilities Nursing (BN) prepares you to become a professional, caring and competent nurse, who prioritises patient needs. It blends wide-ranging clinical placements* with research based theory and supported clinical skills training featuring experts through experience and virtual technologies, which enable you to practise skills in a supported environment.

Spending half of your time on placement instils the importance of being part of a wider healthcare team, where you are supported by a designated practice supervisor and practice assessor to support you to develop your clinical skills. You’ll be working alongside experienced nurses with valuable knowledge and insight they are only too willing to pass on. You’ll also be taught by academics and clinical experts who are passionate to share their wealth of skills, knowledge and experience of learning disabilities nursing.

Learning disabilities nursing is underpinned by values of equality and inclusion, human rights, personalisation, strengths-based, person-centred, partnerships, respect and health-focused. These values underpin learning disabilities nursing practice and the BN (Hons) Learning Disabilities Nursing course.

Understanding diversity is key to providing person-centred, holistic nursing to meet identified needs. Learning disabilities nurses work in partnership with the person and their family and/or carers, often alongside multidisciplinary teams across health and social care. You will develop an understanding of their needs and use an evidence-based approach to think creatively and flexibility to support and enable individuals to reach their full potential.

From the outset, clinical skills training builds the skills required to become a professional registered nurse. Our simulation-based training equipment, using VR and lifelike manikins, lets you safely examine ‘patients’ and interact in real-time to clinical situations based on real-life examples. This prepares you for the realities of working and responding to such situations, both on placement and future practice.