Chief Nursing Officer Jane Cummings is now 'content for revalidation to proceed in England from April 2016', in a letter to the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).
The letter states that the Department of Health and the England Revalidation Board has noted 'increased readiness across all sectors for the introduction of revalidation'.
This follows previous concerns that the Department of Health had around England's readiness to implement the new model of revalidation despite it being approved at the NMC's Council meeting on 8 October. It was thought that the new model of revalidation could put extra pressure on employer budgets.
The other three UK countries had previously confirmed that they were mostly ready to implement revalidation.
The letter from Ms Cummings sent today, confirms that the DH is now happy to back to implementation of the new model of revalidation from April 2016.
Jackie Smith, the chief executive of the NMC, welcomed today’s confirmation from the Department of Health that England is ready for the implementation of revalidation for nurses and midwives, as planned from April 2016.
'Earlier this month, the NMC’s Council approved the introduction of the new system for all nurses and midwives to ensure that they regularly demonstrate they are able to deliver care in a safe, effective and professional way. With all four UK countries ready for revalidation, we look forward to continuing to work closely with them as well as employers, trade unions and professional bodies, to help support the UK’s 684,000 nurses and midwives through the new process.
'The introduction of revalidation is the most significant change to regulation in a generation and we firmly believe that it will give the public confidence that the people who care for them are continuously striving to improve their practice,' said Ms Smith.
Ms Cummings stated in her letter that she expects the NMC to introduce robust monitoring once the new model is introduced and to evaluate the revised guidance and to ensure that it does not have a negative impact on front-line care. She also said that the England Board will continue to work with the NMC and other UK countries to increase the readiness of revalidation.
Janet Davies, chief executive and general secretary at the Royal College of Nursing, said: 'Revalidation is a hugely important step – and when fully implemented will help nurses to deliver the best care to patients. It is positive to know that the NHS in England will push forward with this, and that all four countries of the UK will be moving forward at the same time.
'Now that there is clarity on the timescale, the RCN will work with the NMC, employers and nurses themselves to ensure that staff get the support they need to carry out the necessary updates. Patient care will be best served by a clear and well implemented system to ensure all staff are up to date, and this is an important step towards that.'