NHS recruitment freeze leaves healthcare students in limbo

A career for life - this is what many students were told when applying for healthcare degrees. But a week ago, a trainee paramedic spoke to the BBC about how she is now looking for work abroad because of a recruitment freeze in Wales.

The story resonated with many people, and dozens studying midwifery, physiotherapy, nursing and other healthcare degrees got in touch, saying they too felt they had been left in limbo. It has now been announced university-run paramedic courses in Wales will be paused from September because there are not enough jobs available.

The Paramedic Science courses are currently run at Swansea University and Wrexham University. The HEIW said the decision, made with the Welsh government and the Welsh Ambulance Services University NHS Trust (WAST), was to reduce competition for vacancies over the next few years and improve employment opportunities.

WAST confirmed recruitment of more paramedics will be extremely limited this year, reflecting a wider UK trend. The Welsh and UK governments said they are working with universities, health boards and graduates to get people into work.

Students in England and Scotland also described how they feared there would be no jobs for them at the end of their degrees, with one woman describing how her heart breaks for her son, who is working in Starbucks and considering moving to Canada so he can use his physiotherapy degree.

Emma Coomer, 41, from Aberdare, Rhondda Cynon Taf, who left a full-time job with a good wage and regular hours at a GP practice to study for a nursing degree at the University of South Wales, said: "It's awful, it's such a let-down. So disappointing."

As many as half of all new nursing graduates could be left without work, the Royal College of Nursing Cymru said earlier this month, adding that the lack of jobs represented a serious failure of workforce planning.

Chloe Hurst, 20, from Powys, is in her final year studying physiotherapy at Cardiff University and feels disillusioned. She said there are currently no Band 5 physiotherapy jobs available in Wales, despite these roles usually being open at this stage. Instead, graduates have been encouraged to apply for Band 3 and 4 positions - roles that do not require a degree.

The Chartered Society of Physiotherapy described recruitment freezes, deleted posts and unfilled vacancies being widespread in services across the UK, with the situation continually worsening. More than 80% of its members believe staffing levels are insufficient to meet patient needs, while many have seen colleagues leave the NHS because workloads have become increasingly overwhelming, it said.

On the decision to pause courses for the 2026-27 year, a spokesperson for HEIW said: "This decision aims to improve employment opportunities for current and future graduates and better align workforce supply with demand."

In Wales, a new Welsh government will be formed and become largely responsible for tackling issues with NHS recruitment following May's Senedd election. The last government, run by Labour, said in April: "We are committed to ensuring that our significant investment in NHS education and training is matched by meaningful employment opportunities."

Analysis by BBC Wales health correspondent Owain Clarke suggests that assumptions about staffing needs made during the pandemic, combined with current budget overspends, have led to the current crisis. Political parties are now debating solutions, with the Welsh Conservatives calling for a health emergency and Plaid Cymru proposing a new comprehensive national workforce strategy.