Enhanced Practice Nurses are registered nurses who have gained additional post-registration education and experiential learning in a relevant subject area. The enhanced level is differentiated from other levels by a registered nurse’s expertise in applying specific knowledge and skills to a designated subject area. Enhanced Practice Nurses are expected to be able to manage discrete activities in complex, challenging and changing situations and environments. They will also hold responsibility for 'team performance and service delivery', and provide supervision to trainee nursing associates, nursing associates and GPNs.
- Consults with patients, their family, and the multi-professional team to undertake assessments of patient need and devise and evaluate complex care plans.
- Evaluates and analyses clinical problems using their clinical knowledge, seeking out and applying relevant evidence, enhanced techniques, interventions, and equipment to make clinical decisions.
- Delivers enhanced clinical care in the context of continual change, challenging environments, different models of care delivery, innovation and rapidly evolving technologies using analysis and their underpinning knowledge to manage complex interventions.
- Teaches and advises patients and their families on how to manage their condition or support the multi-disciplinary team to do so.
- Participates in clinical audits and research projects and implements changes as required, including the development, and updating of practice protocols / guidelines and procedures locally.
- Provides supervision to trainee nurse associate, nurse associates and general practice nurses.
- Facilitate and support the development and delivery of innovative training and education to staff, to improve competence and confidence, in line with best practice and guidance related to area of expertise.
- Works as part of a MDT within the PCN, using the principles of delegation, delegates work to other members of the MDT and take responsibility for the delegated activity as appropriate.
- Participate in and/or lead formal training events promoting best practice in area of expertise.
- Provide professional and clinical leadership and mentorship, acting as a clinical role model on the delivery of evidence-based practice.
- Advise and support on the development and delivery of work streams relating to area of expertise as part of the PCN’s strategy, where appropriate.
- Work proactively with key local and national stakeholders to develop more integrated care pathways and holistic models of care, through dissemination of specialist skills and knowledge.
- Contribute to the delivery of local policy, procedures and protocols for the PCN to improve identification, assessment, ongoing support for patients and their family carers.
- Strong verbal and written communication skills
- Ability to hold responsibility
- Demonstrate initiative
- Excellent interpersonal skills to develop relationships with patients and other colleagues
- Managing and making effective use of time
- Critical thinking and problem solving skills
- Ability to work independentley and make decisions autonomously
- Effectively adapt to change
- Problem solving skills
- Works within practice and across PCNs
- Analytical thinking
- Ability to work as a team and provide supervision to a range of nursing roles
- Conflict resolution and negotiation skills
- Clinical leadership skills
Nursing Training Resource Document
The Primary Care Training Hub have collated a list of all available e-learning courses to the nursing workforce in primary care. We recommend to regularly check this document for newly added courses.
Primary Care Resources
The Primary Care Training Hub have developed an Online Training and Learning webpage to compile all available online training courses. These online courses are from a range of different training providers and provide amazing e-learning development opportunities for primary care staff.
This NENC Training Page collates all training that is available to all localities across North East and North Cumbria, commissioned by The Primary Care Training Hub.
e-Learning for Healthcare
The following resources can be accessed via e-Learning for Healthcare (e-LfH). E-LfH provides free e-learning programmes which can support you in your professional development. If you do not already have an account, click here to register using your NHS email address. If you already have an account, please use the same link to firstly log in to access the following resources.
- Resources for Nurses Deployed into Primary and Community Care: The learning resources provided here contain essential training materials to support Registered Nurses returning to work or being redeployed into a primary and community setting. This includes, GP surgeries, community and care home settings. The training here is intended to equip you with the basics and get you started and complement any training that you will receive in a local practice setting.
- All Our Health: This course contains the All Our Health bite-sized e-learning sessions to give health and care professionals an overview of topics including key evidence, data and signposting to trusted resources to help prevent illness, protect health and promote wellbeing.
- Wound Care: This e-learning programme aims to support the health and care workforce in developing the knowledge and skills required to enable appropriate wound care to be delivered to people in any setting.
- Dementia: The dementia e-learning modules have been designed to familiarise health and social care staff with approaches they can take to enable people living with dementia and their family carers to live as well as possible.
- Five Ways to Wellbeing: This course introduces the concept of wellbeing and describes how the Five Ways to Wellbeing can be implemented in a variety of settings to promote it.
- : The MECC e-learning programme is designed to support learners in developing an understanding of public health and the factors that impact on a person’s health and wellbeing. It focuses on how asking questions and listening effectively to people is a vital role for us all.
- General Practice Nursing Toolkit: General Practice Nurses work as part of a Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) within GP surgeries and assess, screen and treat patients of all ages. In addition to providing traditional aspects of nursing care such as wound care, immunisations and administration of medicines, they run clinics for patients with LTCs.
- : These e-learning modules are designed to develop your knowledge and understanding of a range of management and leadership topics.
- : NHSE introduced Professional Nurse Advocate (PNA) training across England post COVID-19 pandemic. This is to sustain an approach to restorative supervision and staff wellbeing, with the aim of improving staff wellbeing and retention, alongside improved patient outcomes.
- : This programme contains e-learning sessions for clinical educators and supervisors across the healthcare professions.
This list is not exhaustive and the programmes available are regularly updated, so we recommend visiting the e-LfH portal and reviewing the available resources via using the “View full catalogue” function, or the “Search the e-learning" function.
To ensure the role is supported within primary care, the Enhanced Practice Nurse should have access to appropriate clinical supervision and an appropriate named individual in the PCN to provide general advice and support on a day to day basis. Clinical Supervision could be conducted by:
Advanced Practice Supervision - A Multi-Professional Learning Resource: this covers foundations of advanced practice, supervision, understanding advanced practitioners and developing your capabilities for advanced practice supervision.
Hold a qualified degree in nursing or registered nursing degree apprenticeship (RNDA), and a post-graduate qualification at level 7 or above relevant to their area of enhanced practice, for example in wound care, diabetes, respiratory and CVD, dementia, women’s health and public health and population health management.
Local universities that offer post-graduate level 7 or above qualifications in nursing:
Apprenticeship schemes:
Registered with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).
A PCN will be entitled to claim reimbursement for one FTE Enhanced Practice Nurse under or at 99,999 registered population; and two for PCNs larger than that.
Professional Body Resources
The Nursing and Midwifery Council have provided guidance on regulations, standards and revalidation.
The Royal College of Nursing have provided background and useful resources for enhanced level nursing.
Role Specifics
The RCN has developed definitions and standards for the enhanced, advanced and consultant levels of nursing to provide clarity for those members of the nursing workforce who aspire to practice at these levels, as well as for employers and higher education institutes (HEIs).
Role Overview
This updated DES 2026/27 outlines the role of the Enhanced Practice Nurse and what is expected from PCNs (pages 107-109).
This document provides support to work and grow within enhanced practice.
This document outlines the scope and principles of enhanced practice.
Tools for Practice
Learn more about advanced practitioners and other clinicians working at an enhanced practice level and what they can do to support your multi-disciplinary teams across a wide range of care settings.
Jobs
If you are looking for a new position related to this role, we recommend checking both NHS Jobs and HealthjobsUK.
NHS Jobs is the official online recruitment service for the NHS in England and Wales, with over 30,000 jobs posted every month.
Hosted by trac.jobs, HealthJobsUK is among the leading job boards in the health and public sector within the UK.
