Sourcing Accommodation for International Nurses

Ensuring new staff have appropriate accommodation is of course essential to their wellbeing and ability to work in this country.

There is a shortage of high-quality accommodation in England, and this is one reason why accommodation in this country is so expensive relative to average incomes. Renting long term is an expensive proposition, but buying a property requires one to have a large deposit in order to be considered for a mortgage. There are a wide variety of schemes available to assist key workers including nurses and others on modest wages.

Employers should consider what they can do to secure safe and convenient accommodation for new staff – and their families in many cases. While emphasis needs to be on planning for accommodation pre-arrival, plans need to be kept flexible as there is inevitable uncertainty until people actually arrive.

A combination of flexible accommodation that supports a group of nurses to provide a peer support and close to OSCE or initial induction training would be very ideal. Accommodation may need to change once a nurse has passed the OSCE and is travelling to a new workplace.

Some trusts have used their internal communications to promote a ‘rent a room’ scheme among their staff who may have a spare room for new starters. This can have a range of benefits if well managed.

Download the Draft Guidance document from Solent NHS Trust below.