Sheffield Hallam University hosts nursing conference to showcase diverse career opportunities

24th June 2025

Nurses, students, patients and educators have come together as part of a collaborative event to showcase diverse nursing career opportunities and inspire the next generation of healthcare professionals.

Sheffield Hallam University's School of Health and Social Care hosted the ‘This Is Nursing’ conference, bringing together key stakeholders from across the healthcare sector to promote nursing as a career choice among young people.

The collaborative event, organised in partnership with the University of Sheffield and NHS England, welcomed approximately 70 teachers and career advisors from South Yorkshire and North Derbyshire.

Attendees represented a diverse range of educational institutions including schools, colleges, local authorities, job centres, and charitable organisations.

The conference aimed to raise the profile of nursing as a career option while highlighting both the diversity of nursing roles and the multiple pathways available for entering the profession.

The programme featured presentations from registered nurses, educators, current students, recent graduates, and patients, each sharing their unique experiences and perspectives on the nursing profession.

The event also involved contributions from local acute and primary care trusts, as well as the Integrated Care Board, demonstrating the strong collaborative approach to addressing nursing workforce challenges in the region.

A dedicated marketplace provided attendees with practical advice and guidance from local healthcare trusts and professional support agencies, including schools and colleges outreach teams, apprenticeship providers, and minoritised support groups.

Following the main conference sessions, guests were offered exclusive access to Sheffield Hallam's state-of-the-art facilities, including tours of simulation suites, virtual reality demonstrations, and workshops created for realistic training scenarios.

Lucy Mottram, Associate Head in the School of Health and Social Care at Sheffield Hallam University, said:

"This was a fantastic opportunity to bring together academics, nurses, students, graduates and patients to share our passion for nursing with teachers and careers advisors from across the region, enabling them to develop a greater understanding of the diversity of career opportunities nursing presents, as well as the wide range of routes into nursing."

Sheffield Hallam University is one of the UK's largest providers of nursing education, supporting students across various specialisms including adult nursing, child nursing, mental health nursing, and learning disabilities nursing.

Find out more about nursing courses at Sheffield Hallam University.