“Record number” of NMC screening decisions

The Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC) has made more decisions at the earliest stage of the fitness to practise process than ever before, it said.

In January 2025, the NMC made more than 1,000 decisions across all stages of FtP – which included “a record” 797 cases at the screening stage either being closed or progressed for a full investigation. The NMC said: “By improving the timeliness of our decision-making, we reduce the uncertainty and anxiety that long waits for a decision can cause. ”

The latest data shows other signs of progress: 

• For the first time since May 2024, overall caseload decreased in January and again in February 2025 to 6,498. That’s despite receiving 588 and 574 new referrals in each of those months respectively   
• The number of cases resolved within 15-month-target has reached 67.1 percent – up from 65.9 percent in January. 

April marks one year since the NMC launched its fitness to practise plan – a programme of more than 30 strategic and operational improvements. This was further refined last autumn to include recommendations from the independent culture review. 

To continue driving improvements, the NMC recently introduced a few “key” initiatives: 

• A new pre-referral checklist 
• A Health Pilot at the investigations stage, to “improve support to individuals whose FtP case relates to a physical or mental health need.” 

Lesley Maslen, NMC Executive Director of Professional Regulation, said: 

“As we move into the second year of our fitness to practise plan, we’re seeing meaningful progress. The improvements in both timeliness and the number of decisions across several stages of fitness to practise are a testament to colleagues’ hard work – with a record-breaking month at the screening stage meaning more people are receiving decisions quicker.

“We cannot afford to be complacent. High volumes of referrals continue to put our teams under significant pressure. That’s why we’ve realigned our plan to ensure we’re making prompt, proportionate decisions, managing referrals effectively, supporting vulnerable professionals and the public, and improving our culture.

“While challenges remain, every improvement we make brings us closer to a regulatory process that is faster, fairer and supportive for everyone involved in fitness to practise.”

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