A Brief History of International Recruitment in the NHS
The Colonial Nursing Service 1896-1966
When the NHS opened its doors in 1948, international nursing had already been operating since 1896 through a London recruitment agency, the Colonial Nursing Association. However, this was an outward facing migration model of British nurses working in posts within the British Empire (Solano & Rafferty, 2007). By the time the Colonial Nursing Service was established in 1940 (still 8 years before the NHS), around 8400 British nurses had been recruited to international posts. The establishment of the Colonial Nursing Service set the precedent for the flow of international nurse recruitment to and from the UK.
The NHS and HMT Empire Windrush
As the NHS established on 5th July 1948, not even a month prior had the HMT Empire Windrush docked on 22nd June, responding to the UK’s call for Commonwealth Citizens to come to Britain post World War II. The passengers were a mix of Jamaican and Caribbean islands including Trinidad, St Lucia and Barbados with many having served in the British Armed forces. These people helped fill job vacancies in the UK post World War II, becoming manual workers, drivers, cleaners and nurses (BBC, 2024). In 1948 there was a shortage of 54,000 nursing vacancies listed in Britain and by 1955, there were 16 NHS recruitment agencies in the British Colonies (The King’s Fund, 2023).
International Recruitment in the NHS
This demonstrates that international recruitment has always been essential to the running of the NHS. In 2018 the UK Government reduced the provision for training British nurses and therefore increased the need for internationally trained nurses. Figures in 2024 show that 1 in 5 NHS staff identify as being a non-British nationality and making up around 20% of the overall workforce (The Nuffield Trust, 2024).
Further reading
Who were the Windrush generation and what is Windrush Day? Published 19 June 2024
Solano, D; and Rafferty, A M; (2007) Can lessons be learned from history? The origins of the British imperial nurse labour market: A discussion paper. International Journal of Nursing Studies. 44: 1055-1063