Post by Deborah Udy Okusaga Akanne (@deborah_udy_okusaga)

NHS England just told every Trust in the country to review their Band 5 nursing roles.

Most internationally trained nurses reading this will never hear about it. Not because it's hidden — because nobody is going to call you and explain what it means for your starting pay.

Here's what it actually means: Trusts are being asked to look again at who's sitting at Band 5 versus who should be higher, based on the actual scope and complexity of what they do. If you came in as an experienced nurse — ICU, theatres, specialist wards — and got slotted into a generic Band 5 entry point without anyone properly assessing your prior post-registration experience, this review is the moment that gap either gets corrected or gets quietly buried for another year.

It will not correct itself. You have to ask the right question, to the right person, with the right evidence.

I've built that exact question into a one-page guide for the nurses I work with. If you want it, comment "BAND" and I'll send it across.

Tomorrow: the exact wording that got three of my clients moved up a pay step this year — and why most nurses never use it.

#NHSJobs2026 #NHSRecruitment2026 #SovereignHealthcareAdvisoryGroup #InternationalNurses #NHSBand5 #AgendaForChange #NHSPay2026 #NHSCareers #NurseLed #InternationalMedicalGraduate #NMCRegistration #UKNursingJobs #NHSBand6 #CareerProgression #NHSInterview2026 #NursingCareers #ICUNurse #PayBanding #NHSWorkforce #SovereignNHS

0 likes · 0 comments · 0 shares