• We provide local NHS services in south London and Kent that take care of the whole person – body and mind.
• We provide a wide range of health and social care services in South East London, specialising in community health, mental health and learning disability services.
• We work at around 100 health sites as well as in local schools, children’s centres and, of course, in people’s homes.
• We have approx. 4,500 members of staff, all of whom are members of Oxleas
• We have 10 Prisons in the SouthWest

The support and guidance of an experienced professional colleague can be invaluable for new registered practitioners, be it newly registered nurses, nursing associates, nurses returning to practice or internationally educated nurses.

Every nurse or nursing associate requiring preceptorship must be allocated a named individual (a preceptor) by their manager within one week of the start of employment. The preceptor must work in the same area of practice, in the same setting as the nurse or nursing associate, have at least 12 months’ experience and take on no more than two preceptees at a time. The role of the preceptor is to help, advise and support, the preceptor is not accountable for the preceptees practice.

The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) 2022 defines preceptorship as: –

The main aim of preceptorship is to welcome and integrate newly registered professionals into their new team and place of work. It helps these professionals translate their knowledge into everyday practice, grow in confidence and understand how to apply the Code in their day-to-day work.

The whole nurse Education Team is involved in our preceptorship programme. Our team is:
Maggie Grainger: Head of Nursing (Education and Development)
Lisa Newsum: Nurse Education Lead
Jonathan Lemmon: Clinical Nurse Educator (Preceptorship Workstream)
Leah Alexander: Clinical Nurse Educator (Apprenticeship Workstream)
Neil Blurton: Clinical Nurse Educator (Student Nurses Workstream)
Sophie Ellul: Project Co-ordinator and Adminstrator

Please email oxl-tr.nursingpreceptorship@nhs.net

• Preceptee – Registered Nurse or Nursing Associate currently attending the preceptorship programme
• Preceptor – Clinical supervisor/line-manager to the Newly Qualified Nurse or Nursing Associate
• Preceptorship Champion – Someone passionate about preceptorship and keen to develop the programme further

For Preceptee’s

• Seven study days, each 7.5 hours each at Memorial
• Six Action Learning Sets, each 7.5 hours day 1 and 6 is at Memorial, days 2-5 are virtual
• 1:1 meetings with your Preceptor
• Completing forms with your Preceptor
• Preceptorship competency document
• Trust Medication competency document
• Local induction
• Local competency documents specified by your line manager

For Preceptor’s

• 1:1 meetings with your Preceptee
• Pastoral support and guidance
• Helping complete competency documents
• Completing forms with your Preceptee

• Attend seven study days, each 7.5 hours each at Memorial
• Attend six Action Learning Sets, each 7.5 hours day 1 and 6 is at Memorial, days 2-5 are virtual
• 1:1 meetings with your Preceptor
• Completing forms with your Preceptor
• Preceptorship competency document
• Trust Medication competency document
• Local induction
• Local competency documents specified by your line manager</1i>

The Nursing Preceptorship Programme lasts 12 months.

The first 6 months is study days and competency documents

The next 6 months is Action Learning Sets

According to the NMC (2023):

Benefits for nurses, midwives and nursing associates:

• Preceptorship offers the structured support needed to transition their knowledge into everyday practice successfully.
• It provides a lifelong journey of reflection and the ability to self-identify continuing professional development needs.
• A positive preceptorship experience is reported to result in newly registered nurses, midwives and nursing associates having increased confidence and sense of belonging, feeling valued by their employer.

Benefits for employers:

• Effective preceptorship outcomes are linked to improved recruitment and retention. Attracting and retaining skilled nurses, midwives, and nursing associates is important for delivering better, safe and effective care.

We have created our preceptorship programme to factor in national quality, for that reason we have used the national guidance in an attempt to make a gold standard programme to support you.

Using the national guidance and abit of Oxleas magic we’ve successfully ran this programme since 2009, adapting it along the way to the requirements of the organisation and our newly registered professionals.

Here are the national standards:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/national-preceptorship-framework-for-nursing/

Yes, to maintain national standard every form must be completed.

Preceptors should be first level registered nurses or midwives who have had at least 12 months post-registration experience within the same area of clinical practice as the nurse requiring support.

They may work full or part time but should be able to demonstrate a willingness and aptitude for the role and must be keen to share their knowledge.

They must also understand the concept of preceptorship and appreciate the additional demands it will place on them.

The preceptor must also have completed the e-learning provided on the trust Oxleas Learning Centre (OLC) or the national e-learning programme on the e-learning for health website to ensure they understand the expectations of them as a preceptor.

This document shows the commitment between the Preceptee and Preceptor to ensure the preceptee gets the quality of preceptorship we expect.

To find this form click here.

This document covers what needs, concerns and expectations the Preceptees have and how the Preceptor can support them.

To find this form click here.

This document is to ensure you get a safe induction into your new workplace, your line manager is responsible for your induction.

To find this form click here.

This is for you to identify where you are right now as a newly registered professional, its designed as a reflective tool for you to see your Stengths, Weaknesses, Oppotunities and Challenges.

To find this form click here.

This is to identify any specific learning needs you may or may not have with smart objectives.

To find this form click here.

This is your midpoint interview, its a check up to see how you’re getting on so far in the programme, its due about 3 months in.

To find this form click here.

This is your sign off meeting to say you have completed your preceptorship programme.

To find this form click here.

This is to demonstrate competence to trust standard of the expectations from preceptorship.

To find the competencies click here.

This is to demonstrate competence to trust standard of medication standards.

To upload your medication competencies click here.

This document is to allow us to keep developing the programme further and ensure it is fit for purpose.

To find this form click here.

To confirm you have done everything you need to complete your preceptorship.

To find this form click here.

• To take responsibility for their own personal and professional development
• To be accountable for their own practice and decisions as per professional standards
• To identify personal strengths and weaknesses and reflect on these during the preceptorship.
• To co-operate with their preceptor in identifying needs and agreeing their learning contract
• To attend and contribute to regular meetings with preceptor and line manager as required.
• Through the process of reflection, illustrate professional development and record developments in a personal professional portfolio as per NMC Revalidation standards.
• To attend the Trust Educational Preceptorship programme
• To agree with the manager and preceptor that the period of preceptorship is complete.
• Provide robust feedback to Preceptorship Lead to further develop the programme to remain modern and supportive of the future workforce.

• To demonstrate best practice
• To plan and schedule regular meetings with the preceptee.
• To provide support, guidance, and encouragement
• To positively challenge aspects of the preceptee’s practice
• To identify and discuss concerns.
• To facilitate reflection on preceptee’s work
• To feedback to preceptee on observed practice
• To establish areas of competence
• To identify areas for development
• To agree and plan future activity.
• To use the preceptee handbook documentation to record meetings, action plans and feedback.
• Work 12 protected hours a year (1 hour per month) to work with preceptees or development of the programme.
• To only have a maximum of 2 preceptees at a time
• Have attended the trust e-learning programme.

• To ensure policy requirements are fully met.
• To ensure preceptee is allocated a preceptor in their first week.
• To participate in formal initial, interim, and final review meetings with the preceptee and preceptor
• To monitor preceptorship and liaise with preceptor regarding the individual’s development.
• To respond to any difficulties if they arise between the preceptor and preceptee and act accordingly.
• To identify an alternative preceptor for the preceptee if required and ensure a handover occurs.
• To provide protected study time for the preceptee to attend Trust Educational Preceptorship programme and other identified mandatory and Essential to role training as required for the post.
• To make arrangements for preceptee and preceptor to work together at least twice a week for the first month.
• To make arrangements for protected time for preceptee and preceptor to meet
• Maintain the twelve protected hours per year (one hour per month) for the preceptors to support preceptees or the development of the programme.
• To ensure the preceptee receives a minimum of seventy-five hours (two weeks) supernumerary time when first commencing in post.

• To facilitate the preceptorship programme
• To evaluate the programme’s efficacy in supporting preceptees to successfully complete their preceptorship.
• To review policy and preceptorship documentation
• To act as a point of contact for preceptees, preceptors and line managers
• To ensure that completion of the preceptorship programme is recorded.
• To address any issues as necessary in respect to the implementation of preceptorship for nurses within the Trust
• Identify and allocate programme dates.
• Signpost staff to PNA support

• Raise the profile of the preceptorship programme, the value and benefits within own clini-cal area or organisation.
• Engage with the organisation’s preceptorship team to continue the evolution of the precep-torship work internally and across region as appropriate. To liaise with other preceptorship champions and facilitate development and delivery of preceptorship communities of practice.
• Provide feedback to organisation’s preceptorship team when improvement and education is required in areas or where newly registered staff require additional input.

Please speak to your preceptor and line manager to help you further develop a plan to complete this, if you’re still struggling please speak to the Nurse Education Team.

On “The Ox” you will find the Employee Assistance Programme, who are designed to help you when you need it, they can help with a huge range of issues.

Please find more infomation here:https://theox.oxleas.nhs.uk/staffroom/health-and-wellbeing/eap/

Thats okay, these are perfectly normal feelings. What matter is that you are aware of these feelings, please talk to someone you are comfortable with to try to resolve these feelings. The Nurse Education Team are always happy to listen, as will your line manager.

If you have a learning difficulty such as dyslexia / dyspraxia / autism / ADHD / ADD or any type of neurodiversity and are struggling with the content provided please let someone know so we can ensure that appropriate resources is sourced for you.

If you feel comfortable please also discuss this with your line manager or preceptor so they can provide you with bespoke learning support, equally it is your right to not tell them.

Please contact the PNA (Professional Nurse Advocate) service, a PNA offers a safe and confidential ‘thinking space’ to discuss any of your concerns/challenges by providing RCS (Restorative Clinical Supervision) sessions using the A-EQUIP Model (Advocation for Education and Quality Improvement), this reduces stress and burn out.

The PNA service also supports with:

• Effective Quality Patient Care
• Promoting individual well being
• Decreasing stress and reduce burn out
• Increasing enjoyment in work and job satistfaction
• Improve team dynamics

Please email: oxl-tr.oxleaspnas@nhs.net for more infomation or RCS.

Oxleas provides a large range of health and well being support please look at: https://theox.oxleas.nhs.uk/staffroom/health-and-wellbeing/ for more infomation.

You can work bank in your own clinical area without having completed your medication competency document. However, you must not administer medication unsupervised until you have completed your medication competency document.

You must complete the whole programme to do bank shifts anywhere else in the trust.

You are protected by the trust preceptorship policy which states in Section 12:6: “During the preceptorship process a preceptee will be supported in declining tasks should they feel that the task is beyond their current ability. This will be established between the preceptee and preceptor through identification of learning needs, supervisions and sufficient observations of practice before the preceptee is expected to complete a task, this specific role such as nurse in charge.”

I understand that at times this can feel impossible and hard to do, however I would remind you all that you are now accountable practitioners, if you do something that you are not comfortable with and it goes wrong, it is you who will be reprimanded not your colleague who asked you to do it. Be sure to protect your pin after you’ve worked so hard to get it!

I would recommend you say no as nicely as possible, try some of the following phrases:
I’m sorry, but I cannot do that yet, if you can show me how to do it, I will be happy to do it in the future.
No, unfortunately I havnt been taught how to do that, can you show me?
I can’t do that, is there another task I can do you for instead to free you up some time?

Please find more information here about mandatory training, health rosters etc. Please also check your emails and complete the induction paperwork correctly – https://theox.oxleas.nhs.uk/how-do-i/