Half of general practice nursing staff across the UK have said they have not yet received a pay rise for 2024/25, a survey has revealed.
Of those who have received an uplift this year, only around one in six (16%) were awarded the 6% recommended by the government in England.
A survey of more than 552 nursing staff working in GP practices – including general practice nurses (GPNs), advanced nurse practitioners, nursing associates and others – was carried out by our sister title Nursing in Practice. The majority of respondents (468) are based in England.
GPN respondents said they continued to feel ‘undervalued’ and that their pay had ‘fallen behind’ colleagues working in secondary care.
The survey results found that:
- A significant 50% of respondents said they had not yet received a pay increase for the 2024/25 financial year.
- 45% reported they had been awarded a pay increase.
- Of those that did get a pay rise, a majority of 73% reported receiving below 6%.
- A third (32.5%) of those that received a pay rise were given an increase of 2% or less. Almost half (45%) received a rise of 3% or less.
These findings are despite the Government in England promising a 6% pay rise for GPs and other salaried practice staff, including nursing staff.
It also provided an additional £311m to help surgeries cover the extra cost although for many practices the cash injection still doesn’t make a 6% pay award affordable, the BMA has warned.
Last year also saw many practice nurses miss out on the full 6% pay rise that had been promised for 2023/24 because of similar funding issues.
Since the extra Government money was due to be paid to practices via the global sum in September, some nursing staff responding to the survey said they were still hopeful of receiving a pay rise later in the year, once it had been confirmed the funding had come in.
Comments from GPNs responding to the survey reflected frustration and disappointment when it comes to their pay.
One practice nurse said: ‘I have been nursing for over 45 years, and I have never felt so undervalued as I do now. I have not received a pay rise for over two years, so I am worse off than I have ever been.’
Another added: ‘I love the team and the practice I work with, however, it makes me seriously think about not continuing working in this role anymore because of the insufficient pay.
‘It makes me sad to think I potentially can’t do the job I truly love because I am having to consider finding [a] different occupation that would pay me and value me for my work.’
One nurse team lead reported she was told that ‘only salaried GPs will receive a pay rise’ this year.
Royal College of Nursing (RCN) national officer Jeni Watts said: ‘The reality is that general nursing practice staff are fundamentally undervalued.
‘It’s unacceptable that so many of them have not yet received the pay rises they are owed, not only for this year but also for 2023/34.
‘Practices are receiving funding targeted to deliver pay rises and we expected it to be implemented fully for nursing staff.’
Last week, the RCN issued a new template letter than GPNs can use to send to their GP practices to seek clarification on pay rises for 2024/25.
Ms Watts added: ‘Every general practice nurse is entitled to the pay uplift and employers need to expedite it.
‘RCN members are well within their rights to demand the pay they were promised.’
These are interim findings with more detailed data to be published in a full report produced by both Management in Practice and Nursing in Practice in early 2025.
The Nursing in Practice survey was open from 20 September until 18 October 2024, collating responses using the SurveyMonkey tool. A total of 552 general practice nursing staff responded to these questions from across the UK, with the majority within England. The survey was advertised to our readers via our website and email newsletter, with a prize draw for £100 vouchers as an incentive to complete the survey. The survey was unweighted, and does not claim to be scientific – only a snapshot.
A version of this article was also published on our sister title Nursing in Practice.
