Children’s Nursing at Walsall Campus Placement Information

You will have the opportunity to train in a variety of placement types and locations. Placements work on a hub and spoke model. You will have a Trust that will be your ‘hub’ and you will be placed with them for the majority of your placement hours. You will also have ‘spoke’ placements which may be with PVI (private, voluntary or independent) providers in the same area or a neighboring Trust. Before making your choice of Trust you should consider which of these is the right area for you and your circumstances. You will need to be able to make your way to your placements at the times given. Many placement areas operate shift patterns 24/7, including weekends and bank holidays. You should consider how you will get to placements and back home if you have early or late placement patterns. Each Trust usually has a main hospital, but you will not always be located at that hospital. You will need to consider how you would travel to all areas where the Trust has sites.

You must complete at least 2300 hours in clinical placements during your course. You will be in placement up to 40 hours per week during your placement blocks. Once you have accepted a place with a particular Trust there is limited opportunity to change your mind. After you have enrolled it is unlikely you would be able to change placement location for the duration of your course. It is therefore important that you check that the placement area given as part of your offer is the correct one for you. It will be on the offer letter. If it is not correct or you cannot see it, you should not accept the offer and contact admissions straight away to see if there is availability for the Trust that you require. We would advise that if there are no spaces for your chosen placement you wait for the next available intake rather than choosing a Trust that you will struggle to travel to.

Theoretical studies will take place at the Walsall campus and you have the choice of five placement areas.  

University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust

Clinical Placements will be within Queen’s Hospital Burton which is the principal provider of acute hospital services for the residents of Burton upon Trent and surrounding areas including South Staffordshire, South Derbyshire, and North West Leicestershire. There is a full complement of the Emergency Department, outpatient, and direct access services, and all specialties are supported by a comprehensive range of clinical services in therapies, pharmacy, pathology, and radiology, serving a population of approximately 360,000 people and is committed to delivering high-quality patient care. Placements may also be in the Royal Derby Hospital, Samuel Johnson Community Hospital, and Sir Robert Peel Community Hospital. Community placements will also be with the Midlands Partnership Foundation Trust. 

The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust

Clinical placements could be anywhere within and around the Dudley catchment areas. Based in the heart of the Black Country, The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust is the main provider of hospital and adult community services to the populations of Dudley, significant parts of the Sandwell borough, and smaller, but growing, communities in South Staffordshire and Wyre Forest. The first hospital trust in the area to be awarded coveted Foundation Trust status in 2008, they provide a wide range of medical, surgical, and rehabilitation services. The Trust provides the full range of secondary care services and some specialist services for the wider populations of the Black Country and West Midlands region. Currently, the Trust serves a population of around 450,000 people from the following locations;  

• Russells Hall Hospital,  
• Guest Outpatient Centre in Dudley  
• Corbett Outpatient Centre in Stourbridge  

• The Trust also provides specialist adult community-based care in patient's homes and more than 40 centres in the Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council community, including Brierley Hill, Stourbridge, and Halesowen 

Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust

Clinical placements will mostly be at Sandwell General Hospital, Rowley Regis Hospital and when it opens, Midland Metropolitan University Hospital. Midland Metropolitan University Hospital stands between Sandwell and West Birmingham. It will be the largest acute healthcare facility within the Trust. It will bring together specialties from all areas of the organisation and provide a hub for emergency care, proudly serving diverse communities.   

The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust

SaTH is the main provider of district general hospital services for nearly half a million people in Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin, and mid-Wales. The main service locations are the Princess Royal Hospital in Telford and the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital in Shrewsbury. Both hospitals provide a wide range of acute hospital services including accident & emergency, outpatients, diagnostics, inpatient medical care, and critical care. Together the hospitals have just over 700 beds. Alongside our services at Princess Royal and Royal Shrewsbury, they also provide community and outreach services such as Consultant-led outreach clinics, Renal dialysis outreach services, and Community services including Audiology and Therapies in areas covering Wrekin, Shrewsbury, Bridgnorth, Ludlow, and Oswestry. This geographical area is the biggest placement area we have. It is very difficult to travel to some areas that the Trust covers as it is very rural. Public transport is very limited and does not cover all placement locations. 

Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust combined with The Royal Wolverhampton Trust

Wolverhampton/Walsall which combines the two Trusts in those areas. Clinical placements will be anywhere within the areas that the Royal Wolverhampton and Walsall Healthcare Trusts operate. Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust provides local general hospital and community services to around 260,000 people in Walsall and the surrounding areas. They are the only provider of NHS acute care in Walsall, providing inpatients and outpatients at the Manor Hospital as well as a wide range of services in the community from some 60 sites including Health Centre’s and GP surgeries. The Trust’s Palliative Care Centre in Goscote is their base for a wide range of palliative care and end-of-life services, providing high-quality medical, nursing, and therapy care for local people living with cancer and other serious illnesses, as well as offering support for their families and carers. The Royal Wolverhampton Trust (RWT) is one of the largest acute and community providers in the West Midlands having more than 850 beds on the New Cross site. They also have 56 rehabilitation beds at West Park Hospital and 54 beds at Cannock Chase Hospital. They are the largest employer in Wolverhampton, employing more than 9,400 staff, covering more than 350 different roles. RWT provides services from the following locations;

• New Cross Hospital - Secondary and Tertiary Services, Maternity, Accident and Emergency, Critical Care and Outpatients 
• West Park Hospital - Rehabilitation Inpatient and Day Care Services, Therapy Services and Outpatients 
• Cannock Chase Hospital - General Surgery, Orthopaedics, Breast Surgery, Urology, Dermatology/Plastic Surgery and Medical Day Case Investigations and Treatment (including Endoscopy, Rheumatology and Dermatology) 
• More than 20 community sites - Community Services for Children and Adults, Walk-in Centres and Therapy and Rehabilitation Services