Undergraduate

Learning Disability Nursing

A Learning Disability Nursing student sitting in a community ward
student showing tablet information to man with learning disability
a smiling nurse at a hospital reception desk
Health, Nursing and Midwifery students outside the Allam Medical Building

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Become a qualified learning disability nurse with this fully approved course at the University of Hull and make lives better. Starting with yours…
You’ll spend 50% of your time on clinical placements, giving you the confidence and experience to become a qualified healthcare professional when you graduate.
You'll receive a payment of at least £6,000 a year from the NHS to study this course. This doesn't need to be paid back and is in addition to any financial support received through your student loan.
By the end of your course, you’ll be ready to undertake the responsibilities of a learning disability nurse and be eligible to register with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).
Get hands-on with our state-of-the-art facilities and practise a range of scenarios in our simulated hospital wards, community living suite, and more.
A Learning Disability Nursing student sitting in a community ward
student showing tablet information to man with learning disability
a smiling nurse at a hospital reception desk
Health, Nursing and Midwifery students outside the Allam Medical Building
Hospital Ward

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Code

Duration

Mode

  • Standard course
  • September 2025

Typical offer

What does this mean?

Learn to change the lives of people with learning disabilities, while gaining professional skills and qualifying as a registered nurse.

Half study and half supported practice, this degree takes you into people’s homes, schools, treatment units and care services.

Plus, you’ll also receive a payment of at least £6,000 a year during your degree. This doesn't need to be paid back and is in addition to any financial support received through your student loan.

  • 100%

    of students in work or further study 15 months after graduating 1

  • 50/50 split

    between classes and placements

  • Get £6k a year

    through the NHS Learning Support Fund 2

  • Award-winning

    Medical facilities

  • Course approved

    by the Nursing and Midwifery Council

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Course overview
Module options

About this course

People with learning disabilities live, work and socialise in our communities. But they need help to do so. That’s where our graduates come in.

This three-year course will equip you with the skills and knowledge to deliver high-quality, evidence-based health care.

You’ll be hands-on from day one thanks to our £28 million Health Campus, which gives you the opportunity to practise in simulated operating theatres, hospital wards, intensive care facilities and more.

But we don’t just teach the theory. You’ll spend 50% of your time on clinical placements, giving you the confidence and experience to take your place on the frontline when you graduate as a qualified registered nurse with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).

Scheduled study hours and how you’re assessed

To meet NMC requirements, you’re expected to study for 4600 hours over 3 years. This is organised over 45 scheduled weeks of study and three trimesters per year, with additional time scheduled for assessment and holidays.

Choose your modules

Each year, you’ll study modules worth a certain number of credits, and you need 120 credits per year. Most modules are 20 credits – so you’ll study six modules each year. Some longer modules, such as a dissertation, are worth more. In these cases, you’ll study fewer modules - but the number of credits will always add up to 120. Some modules are compulsory, some are optional, so you can build a course that’s right for you.

Fundamental Nursing Skills

Link theoretical knowledge with fundamental nursing skills in a safe clinical simulation environment giving you a firm grounding in preparation for clinical practice.

Core•20 credits

Fundamentals of Professional Practice

Explore ethical, legal, and professional dimensions of nursing practice and use research skills as part of academic writing.

Core•20 credits

Practice 1

Get your first taste of working in a healthcare environment with the support of a practice supervisor and practice assessor.  Participate in people’s care with support and guidance from others.

Core•30 credits

Promoting Health and Preventing Ill Health

Explore how the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age impact on their health and life experiences.

Core•20 credits

Practice 2

Build on Practice 1 to become more confident and competent in participation in care with guidance and support from others.

Core•30 credits
5 Modules

Developing Nursing Skills

Consolidate your clinical skills in a clinical simulation environment and extend and apply your knowledge of life and social sciences to nursing practice.

Core•20 credits

Developing Professional Practice

Explore how nurses work within multidisciplinary teams, with patients and service users and their supporters to deliver safe, effective, meaningful care.

Core•20 credits

Practice 3

Be an active participant in care under the guidance and supervision of practice supervisors and assessors.

Core•30 credits

Maximising My Health

Explore the range of physical and mental health conditions which may impact on people with a learning disability across the spectrum of age, ability, and service provider.

Core•20 credits

Practice 4

Build on Practice 3 to become more confident and competent in participating in care with minimal guidance and supervision from others.

Core•30 credits
5 Modules

Leading and Managing Care

Explore the leadership role of the registered nurse as facilitator of change who drives forward the quality of care and mitigates risk.

Core•20 credits

Practice 5

Work towards practicing independently with minimal supervision as well as lead and coordinate care.

Core•30 credits

Living My Best Life

Prepare to work autonomously and as part of an extended team of professionals to support a range of people with learning disability and their families and carers who have complex needs.

Core•40 credits

Practice 6

Build on Practice 5 and continue to lead and co-ordinate care with increasing confidence and confidence whilst practicing independently with minimal supervision.

Core•30 credits
4 Modules

This course is accredited by

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Gemma Holden

Course Overview 3 mins

David Dale

Student story 1 min

Allam Medical Building

Course highlight 3 mins

Healthcare family

University Life 3 mins

Entry requirements

What do I need?

When it comes to applying to university, you'll need a certain number of UCAS points. Different qualifications and grades are worth a different amount of points. For this course, you'll need…

Use UCAS's calculator to work out your estimated points

We consider experience and qualifications from the UK and worldwide which may not exactly match the combinations above.

But it's not just about the grades - we'll look at your whole application. We want to know what makes you tick, and about your previous experience, so make sure that you complete your personal statement.

Have questions? Our admissions team will be happy to help.

What do I need?

If you require a student visa to study or if your first language is not English you will be required to provide acceptable evidence of your English language proficiency level.

See other English language proficiency qualifications accepted by the University of Hull.

If your English currently does not reach the University’s required standard for this programme, you may be interested in one of our English language courses.

Visit your country page to find out more about our entry requirements.

Fees & funding

How much is it?

Additional costs you may have to pay

Your tuition fees will cover most costs associated with your programme. There are some extra costs that you might have to pay, or choose to pay, depending on your programme of study and the decisions you make:

  • Books (you can borrow books on your reading lists from the library, but you may buy your own)
  • Optional field trips
  • Study abroad (incl. travel costs, accommodation, visas, immunisation)
  • Placement costs (incl. travel costs and accommodation)
  • Student visas (international students)
  • Laptop (you’ll have access to laptops and computers on campus, but you may want your own)
  • Printing and photocopying
  • Professional-body membership
  • Graduation (gown hire and photography)

Remember, you’ll still need to take into account your living costs. This could include accommodation, travel, food and more.

How do I pay for it?

How much is it?

Additional costs you may have to pay

Your tuition fees will cover most costs associated with your programme. There are some extra costs that you might have to pay, or choose to pay, depending on your programme of study and the decisions you make:

  • Books (you can borrow books on your reading lists from the library, but you may buy your own)
  • Optional field trips
  • Study abroad (incl. travel costs, accommodation, visas, immunisation)
  • Placement costs (incl. travel costs and accommodation)
  • Student visas (international students)
  • Laptop (you’ll have access to laptops and computers on campus, but you may want your own)
  • Printing and photocopying
  • Professional-body membership
  • Graduation (gown hire and photography)

Remember, you’ll still need to take into account your living costs. This could include accommodation, travel, food and more.

How do I pay for it?

Our academics

You’ll be taught by expert staff in some of the UK’s finest health facilities following our £28 million investment.

Our academics work closely with local partners to train the healthcare professionals of the future, as well to conduct research that is at the forefront of its field and benefits the wellbeing of our local community and beyond.

See more academics for this subject
prof-jacquie-white
Featured academic

Professor Jacquie White

Jacquie is our Head of School for Nursing and Midwifery and a registered mental health nurse. Among her biggest achievements is co-designing the Health Improvement Profile (HIP), a tool used by mental health nurses across the world.
Gillian Wilson
Featured academic

Gillian Wilson

Gill qualified as a registered nurse in 1988 and worked in the NHS for 24 years in a variety of roles. She joined the University of Hull in 2012 as a lecturer in nursing for long-term conditions and now teaches across our nursing programme.

Take a look at our facilities

Hospital Ward

Get hands-on in our mock hospital ward and practise a range of scenarios in our state-of-the-art facilities.

Operating Theatre

Develop the skills and confidence to work in a surgical setting with our mock operating theatre on campus.

Critical Care Room

Develop the skills needed to work with very ill patients in an intensive care setting with this specialist training area.

Health Campus

Benefit from the facilities of our award-winning Allam Medical Building with its simulated hospital ward, intensive care unit, resuscitation unit, and more.

See more in our virtual tour

Look around

Look around

Look around

The Allam Medical Building lit up with blue lights at night
Hospital Ward
Allam Medical Building Operating Theatre
Allam Medical Building Critical Care Room
The Allam Medical Building lit up with blue lights at night
Exterior of the Allam Medical Building

Future prospects

Our nursing degrees have an incredible graduate employability rating, so the career prospects couldn’t be better.

You’ll graduate with the skills and experience to be a professional healthcare practitioner and eligible to register with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).

Most of our graduates go on to work in the NHS – but others find positions overseas, in private practice, in the social services, the pharmaceutical industry, the Armed Forces, the prison service or in specialist areas such as drug rehabilitation.

University of Hull Open Day

Your next steps

Like what you’ve seen? Then it’s time to apply.

The standard way to apply for this course is through UCAS. This will give you the chance to showcase your skill, qualities and passion for the subject, as well as providing your academic qualifications.

How to apply

Not ready to apply?

Visit our next Open Day, and see all that Hull has to offer for yourself. Talk to our lecturers about your subject, find out what university is really like from our current students, and take a tour of our beautiful campus and amazing facilities.

Book your place now

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1. 100% employability (Mental Health and Learning Disabilities Nursing) UK domicile full-time first degree leavers; Higher Education Graduate Outcomes statistics, for the academic year 2021/22, published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency June 2024.

2. Available to all undergraduate students studying Nursing, Midwifery, Paramedic Science or Physiotherapy. You don't need to pay this back, and you'll get it as well as your student loan.

All modules presented on this course page are subject to availability and this list may change at any time.

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