School of Nursing and Midwifery

BSc (Hons) Learning Disability Nursing

BSc (Hons) Full-time 3 years

New Year, New Career - Is Nursing your next adventure? Have you always wanted to be a nurse? Is now the time to shine?

New Year, New Career - Is Nursing your next adventure? Have you always wanted to be a nurse? Is now the time to shine?

Award
BSc (Hons)
Start date(s)
14 September 2026
UCAS Code
B761
Course specifications
Course length
Full-time (3 years)
Campus location
University: Walsall Campus
UCAS points calculator

Why choose this course?

Studying BSc (Hons) Learning disability nursing opens a world of rewarding opportunities where nurses take care of the social, psychological, and physical health of people with a learning disability. You will support people with learning disabilities by offering choice and opportunities, through their everyday life, help with making decisions and developing their independence which are all fundamentals that we take for granted hopefully making a lasting difference. Each working day brings variety, purpose and professional growth allowing you opportunity to empower individuals, families, and communities.

Our learning disability nursing degree is designed to provide you with the knowledge and skills to deliver comprehensive care to service users across various healthcare settings. You will have the privilege of being there for people in their time of need, and helping them live happier, more comfortable lives.

Students who qualify for student finance will also be able to apply for a non-repayable training grant from the NHS Learning Support Fund which is a minimum of £5000 per year for eligible students. You may also be eligible for support with childcare and travel costs.

Our academic team has a wide range of knowledge and experience and strong links with practice partners and are able to share real world experiences to enhance your learning.

Whilst nursing can be challenging and emotionally demanding it remains a fulfilling and rewarding career. Making a difference one person at a time, choose a career that changes lives including yours. 

Clinical Skills Lab facilities:

We have simulated environments for all fields of nursing. We have state-of-the-art skills facility at both City Campus and Walsall Campus.

Both of our campuses have mock ward environments, fitted out with hospital beds and the equipment you will use in the labs to practice your skills is the same high specification as you will find in your clinical placements. We have high fidelity mannequins that we use to be patients, as well as other simulated teaching tools such as mannequins designed to let you pass a naso-gastric tube, and arms to practice venepuncture.

We have a skills lab at Walsall, which is designed to look like a children's ward for our Children's Nursing students, it has cots as well as beds and even child size high fidelity mannequins.

We also have simulated home environments. Mental Health Nursing students can practice skills in a caring for someone at home in the flat at our City campus. Learning Disability Nursing students can see how to support a patient with a learning disability in our adapted living space at our Walsall campus.

Who will teach you on this course?

You will be taught by experienced nursing lecturers some of whom are also Registered Learning Disability Nurses (RNLD) with a variety of different skills sets and experiences in learning disability specialist areas. This includes lecturers with; forensic, assessment and treatment units, Learning disability hospital settings, social/residential/nursing care as well as clinical leads in community care backgrounds. Teaching will include lectures, simulation sessions, bootcamp and gamification. You will also get guidance and support whilst out in practice by a member of the teaching team based at the University, as well as a placement assessor who is a registered nurse in the area you are allocated.

Learning Disability Nursing poster with key points

All of our BSc programmes offer a direct route professional registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) and a career as a registered nurse.

The University of Wolverhampton School of Nursing and Midwifery is one of the few universities in the Region to offer programmes in all fields of nursing - Adult Nursing, Learning Disability Nursing, Mental Health Nursing and Children’s Nursing.

What's unique about this course?

  • Following a course revalidation a new and exciting programme has been designed for future nursing students including the enhancement of field identity. 
  • Recognised by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) for the purpose of registration as a qualified nurse
  • During year 2 you will have an option module and will be able to choose from one of eight 'Healthcare Improvement and Innovation' topics.
  • Our dedicated support team available from your first day to your last day providing access to mental health and wellbeing services.
  • State of the art, hi-tech simulated learning facilities designed to build your skills and confidence in a safe and nurturing environment
  • Excellent partnerships with placement providers in local NHS trusts within Wolverhampton, Walsall, Dudley, Sandwell, Burton and Shropshire.
  • Opportunity to undertake an elective placement (subject to availability).

What happens on the course?

Our new BSc (Hons) Learning Disability degree will provide you with the expertise you will need to become a registered nurse.

The 3-year programme is 50% theory and 50% practice.

Theory

We use a blended approach to deliver theory-based content where you will have the opportunity to learn in a variety of different environments. We use classroom based, online teaching and gamification to explore opportunities to learn and grow. There are a wide variety of assessment methods giving students with diverse learning styles an opportunity to shine. The lived experience of people in our community is incorporated into our curriculum to support your understanding and awareness of real-world scenarios.

Practice

We offer a range of learning activities and clinical skills training within our state-of-the-art skills labs, at either Wolverhampton or Walsall Campus, to prepare you for your clinical placements. We offer opportunities to explore hospital and community nursing, in a wider range of settings, from NHS, voluntary and private sectors across a wide geographical area. During your third year you will have the opportunity for an elective placement of your choice (subject to availability).

Placements on the course

Placements include providing nursing care for people with learning disabilities including children, adults, the elderly and those who are physically ill or have a physical disability. In order to ensure all the people you care for are protected and kept safe, you will be expected to abide by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) guidance for student nurses.


As a student nurse, you are required to work shifts, including nights, weekends and bank holidays this will ensure that you gain experience of the different types of care patients receive at different times of day. We understand that the demands of placement can be overwhelming and there is a variety of support available within placement and at the university from practice staff, academic staff and the wider university welfare infrastructure Click here for more details.


During your placements, you will gain an appreciation for the entire patient journey across all health and social care settings. This will enable you to evaluate and interpret person centre care by experiencing the surrounding circumstances, environment or background of the population that we serve transforming theory from an isolated idea into real world knowledge.


Strengthening Communities Through Partnership
At the University of Wolverhampton, we're proud to maintain strong collaborative relationships with our practice partners across Burton, Dudley, Sandwell, Shropshire, Walsall and Wolverhampton. These partnerships ensure our nursing students receive exceptional clinical experience and professional development opportunities while contributing to the healthcare needs of local communities.
You will gain hands-on experiences in a variety of hospital, community and excellent nursing/residential homes, where you work alongside a range of healthcare professionals. You will experience opportunities for inter-disciplinary learning across all nursing pathways and with midwifery, social work and social care. with a range of healthcare professionals.

Placements will be undertaken in the following areas:

  • Black Country Healthcare NHS Trust
  • Midland Partnerships Foundation Trust
  • Private & Voluntary Sector
  • Social Care Settings
  • Special Schools
  • Partners within self-advocacy  


The course helps you to make a difference and to enable the person with a learning disability to achieve their aspirations to engage in citizenship in their local communities. 


For more information on placements and locations, visit Nursing Placements.

All placements are with an approved provider, monitored in accordance with the requirements of the Nursing and Midwifery Council ensuring you gain the hands-on professional experience required for Registration.

Employability on the course

School Vision:

‘The School of Nursing and Midwifery believe that its role is to provide graduates equipped to meet the present and evolving health needs of a individuals and populations both locally, regionally, nationally and internationally.’

Underpinning Framework:

  • Embedding graduate attributes throughout the curriculum
  • Identifying, valuing and building an individual’s employability skills at all levels
  • Building relationships with employers
  • Preparing students for both their first job and their future career
  • Make the school the first choice for career building CPD

Aim:

To use the strategy to maintain and develop the skills of students at all stages of the journey from foundation to master’s level to build successful careers in their chosen fields of employment. To foster a sense of social connectiveness and an ability to link to professional cultures.

Course Modules

Additional Information

Everything you need to know about this course!

Studying this learning disability nursing degree enables you to experience:

  • excellent opportunities for interdisciplinary learning across all nursing pathways and with midwifery, social work and social care students
  • excellent placement opportunities across a range of health, education, day services and social care settings
  • opportunities to contribute to national and regional Learning Disability conferences
  • opportunities to publish in national learning disability journals
  • opportunities to participate in national and regional research projects
  • £250 Travel Fund for first year students that can be used for travel to placements as well as to University. If additional costs are incurred when attending placements, you can apply to the NHS for support
  • international placement opportunities such as Spain, Finland, Norway

Nursing facilities tour

Why study at the University of Wolverhampton? 

Choosing where to train as a nurse is a huge decision. At the University of Wolverhampton, our Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) approved program is designed to shape you into a compassionate, highly skilled, and deeply impactful Registered Nurse.

Here is why future healthcare leaders choose to study with us at our dedicated Walsall Campus:

Learning Rooted in Real Lives - SUCCESS Group

We believe that to support individuals with learning disabilities effectively, you must learn directly from them. Our curriculum uniquely integrates experts by experience through our university SUCCESS group. You will collaborate directly with people who have learning disabilities within your regular teaching modules, ensuring your education is built entirely around a person-centered approach.

Immersive, State-of-the-Art Simulation Facilities

Before you step onto a real ward, you will build your clinical confidence in our immersive healthcare simulation spaces in the Sister Dora Building. Our high-tech nursing labs replicate day-to-day healthcare environments, allowing you to safely master advanced clinical technologies, triage scenarios, and interprofessional care coordination alongside Midwifery, Social Work, and Social Care students.

Premier Clinical Placement Networks

Our course splits your time equally: 50% in academic study and 50% on practical clinical placement. We partner with outstanding NHS Trusts and private, voluntary, and independent (PVI) providers across the region to ensure you graduate with a diverse, rich professional network.

Exceptional Career Prospects and Global Opportunities

The landscape of learning disability care is evolving rapidly, and our graduates are leading that change. Wolverhampton nursing students enjoy excellent employment rates, stepping straight into roles as community nurses, forensic practitioners, and acute health liaisons. Want to broaden your horizons? We offer exciting international placement opportunities in countries like Spain, Finland, and Norway.

We’re Invested in Your Journey

We know that professional nursing training comes with extra steps. To support you fully from day one, the University of Wolverhampton provides your required Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) and Occupational Health checks completely free of charge once you accept your offer to study with us.

You will gain subject knowledge and understanding surrounding the professional and ethical conduct of a nurse, to deliver a high standard of appropriate nursing care and leadership and supervision of others, as well as being able to reflect on your personal and professional development.

You will explore health and social care policy trends and develop skills of enquiry to underpin your own practice with current credible evidence and evaluate the delivery of healthcare services.

You will learn decision-making and problem-solving techniques in order to provide quality care to patients and support their families.

By the end of the programme you will meet the requirements of the Nursing and Midwifery Council and will be able to register as a Registered Nurse.

Location Mode Sep intake Fee Year
Home Full-time £9535 per year 2025-26
Home Full-time £9790 per year 2026-27
International Full-time £15995 per year 2025-26
International Full-time £17600 per year 2026-27

The University is committed to a transparent fee structure, with no hidden costs, to help you make an informed decision. This includes information on what is included in the fee and how fees are calculated and reviewed.


If a tuition fee is not showing, we may not offer this intake for this course. Please check the start date information on the course finder for start dates.

All eligible nursing students on pre-registration courses will also receive a Training Grant of at least £5,000 per year that is not means-tested and will not have to be repaid.

GCSEs at grade C+/ 4 in an English-based subject and Maths or equivalent qualifications (e.g. Key Skills Level 2/ Learn Direct Level 2/ Functional Skills Level 2).

Please note we do NOT accept GCSE Short Courses

PLUS EITHER

  • 104 UCAS points
  • A Levels - grades BCC
  • BTEC L3 Extended Diploma or OCR Cambridge L3 Technical Extended Diploma - grades DMM
  • BTEC L3 Diploma - grades D*D
  • CACHE Level 3 Extended Diploma at a B grade
  • Access to HE Diploma (60 credits) of which a minimum of 45 must be at Level 3 (104 UCAS point equivalence, minimum 15 credits at distinction)
  • T Levels - overall grade of Merit
  • Undergraduate or Postgraduate degrees
  • Foundation degrees /HND/ HNC

Not met the entry criteria for this course?   Did you know you could study Nursing within 4 years?  Why not discover more information about our new Foundation Year courses and what you need to get onto them.  Please visit Foundation Year Courses to find out more about what opportunities we have for you

Have you also considered other careers in Health?  Did you know we also offer:

  • Learning Disability Nursing
  • Coming soon our self-funded apprenticeship  
  • Degrees in Public Health, Social Care and Health Studies
  • Podiatry 

Please visit the Institute of Health for more information

Use the UCAS Tariff calculator to check your qualifications and points

If you've got other qualifications or relevant experience, please contact The Gateway for further advice before applying.

Evidence of digital literacy and technological literacy capability will be determined by successful completion of your application.

 

Other Requirements

Applicants will also be required to provide satisfactory personal statement and reference (academic or employer).

Those meeting the entry requirements may be shortlisted for a values-based selection process and will be subsequently required to meet a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) Check and Occupational Health requirements.

Read further information regarding interview preparation

 

Additional Information

For students joining this course in September 2025, the first year of study will take place at Telford Campus. The remaining years of the course will be completed at our City Campus.

During the Nursing course you will be required to attend placements.   When you are asked for your choice of placement area we will endeavour to meet your request however we must emphasise that this cannot be guaranteed and therefore you must ensure you are able to travel to the final placement area you are allocated.

Please note if you are on a Student Visa and do not pass a module, you may be required to pause your studies and retake the module in a future semester, this is known as stepping off. If you are stepping off you may be required to take a leave of absence and return to your home country while you are not actively studying. The Student Visa Compliance and Advice team will then support you through the process of applying for a new visa when you are ready to resume your studies.

Free Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) and Occupational Health Check:

Due to the professional nature of some of our courses you may also be required to complete a Declaration of Health and Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) Check.  We will coordinate both of these non-academic conditions with you should your course require this and you receive an offer from us

There will be no cost for the DBS this is free to applicants who have secured an offer and have chosen to study at the University of Wolverhampton.

Skilled Worker Visa Requirements:

Applicants who are in the UK on a Skilled Worker Visa or are a dependent of a Skilled worker are not eligible to be considered for this course. 

Contextual Offers

The university recognises that many students have additional barriers in progression to university, whether this be through disability, as a care leaver, from an area of deprivation or another factor. The university wishes to provide additional support for these students through the contextual offer scheme. If you are eligible, the University will apply a contextual Admissions decision, in the form of a reduced offer letter by up to two grades or 16 UCAS tariff points. Find out more.

Don't have GCSE English and/or Maths? Take our Equivalency Assessments

We understand that not everyone is able to achieve GCSE Maths and English for a variety of reasons. Our equivalency assessments provide an opportunity for you to further your English and/or Maths skills ready for your studies, as well as being able to meet part of the entry requirements for many of our undergraduate and postgraduate courses. Our online equivalency assessments are free of charge and accepted as the equivalent to a GCSE for the majority of our courses, however applicants of Initial Teacher Training courses will need to sit an on-campus equivalency test which costs £35. Find out more about our equivalency tests.

My clinical placements and work experience have reinforced my strong belief that learning disability nursing remains highly relevant in contemporary UK society, as people with learning disabilities continue to face significant health and social inequalities, and many have no one to advocate for them. This course has equipped me with the skills to advocate on their behalf.

I am passionate about this field because healthcare professionals have a duty under the NMC Code to provide person-centred care and make reasonable adjustments for people with learning disabilities. However, such commitment was not always evident during my clinical placement.

Third year student

"Completing the learning disability nursing training course. has been a highly valuable and transformative experience. The course has strengthened my understanding of person-centred care, communication, and the importance of advocacy when supporting individuals with complex needs. Through a combination of academic learning and practical placements, I have developed confidence in applying the NMC Code, working within multidisciplinary teams, and adapting care to meet each individual’s unique needs.

Through engagement with person centred approaches, including inclusivity, reasonable adjustments, and holistic care, I have improved my ability to support individuals with learning disabilities in a respectful and empowering manner.

This experience will continue to contribute to my ongoing development, supporting continuous improvement in my clinical practice and professional growth".

Second year student

 

Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC)

Recognised by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) for the purpose of registration as a qualified nurse (learning disabilities).

Tuition Fees Loan (Home Fee Status):

Most students will be able to apply for a loans to pay for these subject to eligibility. To find out more information please refer to the government Student Finance website.

Changes for EU students:

The UK government has confirmed that EU students starting courses from 1 August 2021 will normally be classified as having Overseas Fee status. More information about the change is available at UKCISA:

EU citizens living in the UK with 'settled' status, and Irish nationals living in the UK or Ireland, will still be classified as Home students, providing they meet the usual residency requirements, for more information about EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS)


Self-funding:

If you don’t want to take out a loan to pay your fees or if you aren’t eligible to receive a loan, you might want to take advantage of the University’s scheme to pay by instalments: See How to pay.

For more information please contact the Gateway.


Your employer, embassy or organisation can pay for your Tuition fees:

If your employer, embassy or organisation agrees to pay all or part of your tuition fees; the University will refer to them as your sponsor and will invoice them for the appropriate amount.

We must receive notification of sponsorship in writing as soon as possible, and before enrolment, confirming that the sponsor will pay your tuition fees.


Financial Hardship:

Students can apply to the Dennis Turner Opportunity Fund.

for help with course related costs however this cannot be used for fees or to cover general living costs.


Bursaries and Scholarships:

In addition the University also offers a range of Bursaries and Scholarships packages

You can find more information on the University’s Funding, cost, fee and support pages.

Telephone

01902 32 22 22

Email

enquiries@wlv.ac.uk

Online

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