How to become a midwifery nurse
Official title: Midwifery nurses
Also called: Midwifery sister, Midwifery manager, Team leader, Midwife-tutor, Midwife manager, Registered midwife, Delivery suite manager, Superintendent midwife
Midwifery nurses deliver, or assist in the delivery of babies, provide antenatal and postnatal care and advise parents on baby care. They work with other healthcare professionals and advise on and teach midwifery practice.
Main tasks
- Monitors condition and progress of patient and baby throughout pregnancy
- Delivers babies in normal births and assists doctors with difficult deliveries
- Monitors recovery of mother in postnatal period and supervises the nursing of premature and other babies requiring special attention
- Advises on baby care, exercise, diet and family planning issues
- Supervises more junior staff and directs the work of the midwifery unit
- Plans and manages midwifery care services
- Delivers lectures and other forms of training in midwifery practice
How to become one
A degree in midwifery is essential. Registered nurses can do a 12-18 month shortened course but graduates from other disciplines must undertake the full three or four year degree programme. Entry to midwifery training without a degree or HND is also possible. Applicants must have a minimum of five GCSEs (or equivalent) and at least two A-levels (or equivalent) for degree programmes.
Ways in
- Apprenticeship (England): Midwife (2019 NMC standards) (Integrated degree) (level 6). England. Typically 48 months. Skills England standard ST0948.
- University: Nursing & Midwifery degrees, Offered by 16 universities in the UK
Pay · Outlook
- Median full-time pay: £46,990 a year The middle half earn £42,084 to £53,564.
- About 44,500 people work in this job now, and about 48,800 are projected by 2035. (+9.6%)
Related jobs
- Registered community nurses
- Registered specialist nurses
- Registered nurse practitioners
- Registered mental health nurses
- Registered children's nurses
- Other registered nursing professionals
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Questions people ask
How do I become a midwifery nurse?
A degree in midwifery is essential. Registered nurses can do a 12-18 month shortened course but graduates from other disciplines must undertake the full three or four year degree programme. Entry to midwifery training without a degree or HND is also possible. Applicants must have a minimum of five GCSEs (or equivalent) and at least two A-levels (or equivalent) for degree programmes.
How much does a midwifery nurse earn in the UK?
Median full-time pay is £46,990 a year (Office for National Statistics). The middle half earn £42,084 to £53,564.
Is a midwifery nurse a growing career in the UK?
Yes. Employment is projected to grow 10% by 2035, from about 44,500 to about 48,800 people (Department for Education).
Do you need a degree to become a midwifery nurse?
Usually. 85% of people in this job hold a bachelor's degree or higher.
Sources
- Office for National Statistics: Annual Population Survey: employment by occupation (April 2025 to March 2026), OGL v3.0, retrieved 2026-10-03
- Office for National Statistics: SOC 2020 Volume 1: structure and descriptions (2026-08-27 edition), OGL v3.0, retrieved 2026-10-03
- Department for Education: Skills Imperative 2035: employment projections by occupation (2021 to 2035 (Warwick IER / Cambridge Econometrics)), OGL v3.0, retrieved 2026-10-03
- Office for National Statistics: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14 (2025 provisional), OGL v3.0, retrieved 2026-10-03
Updated 2026-10-03
Graduate outcomes: Discover Uni dataset, HESA (www.hesa.ac.uk), licensed under CC BY 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0). Aggregated by subject and adapted by Peernovo.