Can someone explain the band thing to me?

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Specializes in Critical Care and ED.

I trained in London in 1989 and emigrated to the USA in 2003, so I'm not familiar with the band system and I keep seeing people referring to it. Can someone explain to me what the bands stand for? Thank you

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Specializes in Emergency Department.

Easy, in your day it would be A,B,C,D,E,F,G,H. Now it is Band 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8.

Staff nurses start at bottom of Band 5 - the old D grade. Charge Nurses will usually be Band 6 or F and Senior Charge Nurses Band 7 or G. There will be some crossover ie. some staff nurses can be a Band 6 etc.

Within the Bands are scales which mean you should get a small rise every year until you reach the top. To earn more salary you have to move up a band but it is job dependent not person dependent. If you want to have a Band 6 salary you must apply for a Band 6 job.

The actual pay scales are here NHS pay scales 217-18 | Royal College of Nursing

Hope this helps.

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Specializes in Surgical, quality,management.

Hey guys,

I am being lazy and not googling too hard....had an applicant for an RN role I have advertised, worked as a band 3 and claimed this was an Enrolled Nurse role. I thought UK did not have ENs? I employ ENs here in Australia but I thought they were phased out in UK and Ireland in the 90s?????

I trained in Ireland on the boarder in 2002 so thought I was across this but now I am confused í ½í¸

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Specializes in Medical and general practice now LTC.

Correct, EN was phased out decades ago. Up until I bridged to RN my title changed from ENG to RN level 2. What year did they qualify?

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Specializes in Emergency Department.

As Silverdragon said, EN's were phased out a while ago. It would be possible for an EN to still be working with only the EN qualification but they would be older.

If you were an EN you were a 'Registered Nurse' and therefore given a Band 5. The EN's in my hospital all have Band 5's as they are Registered Nurses.

The NMC still records one of my qualifications as Registered Nurse (Level 2).

Band 3 strikes me as an HCA role. Did they perhaps mean they worked to the same level as an EN? I'm sure the pay scales say ALL Registered Nurses commence at Band 5. Demand to see their qualifications or check the name and PIN number on the NMC register here

Search the register

Hope that helps, keep us informed.

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Band 3 & 4 are health care assistants and not registered nurses. Although from next year we'll be getting a new band 4 called a nursing associate.

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Specializes in Surgical, quality,management.

Thanks guys,

I reviewed the application today again - he refers to himself as a band 3 nurse in his CV and as an EN in his cover letter. He didn't make the cut anyway based on his experience for what I am looking for, plus I detest generic cover letters....

I get a certain kick out catching people out in the truth stretching in CVs. I grew up in Ireland and an international nurse tried to claim that a small regional community hospital was a major hospital on her Australian job application. She emailed me asking why she didn't get considered........

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Am I right in thinking that he was a previous band 3 and applying for a registered nurse job?

I don't think enrolled nurses were ever equivalent to a band 3. I'm pretty sure we stopped referring to enrolled nurses when we changed to AfC bands so that doesn't even make sense. (But please do correct me if i'm wrong about this!)

Found an interesting link about it here: http://www.ihrdni.org/303-004.pdf - Which specifically says band 2&3 were unqualified support staff.

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Specializes in Practice educator.
Thanks guys,

I reviewed the application today again - he refers to himself as a band 3 nurse in his CV and as an EN in his cover letter. He didn't make the cut anyway based on his experience for what I am looking for, plus I detest generic cover letters....

I get a certain kick out catching people out in the truth stretching in CVs. I grew up in Ireland and an international nurse tried to claim that a small regional community hospital was a major hospital on her Australian job application. She emailed me asking why she didn't get considered........

He's pulling a fast one it seems.

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Specializes in Surgical, quality,management.
He's pulling a fast one it seems.

Yep....exactly, also needs sponsorship so probably desperate to fatten up the CV.

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