Development of the nursing associate role in community and primary care settings across England

Nursing associates have now been a part of the health and social care workforce in England for three years and are starting to make a contribution to managing current workforce challenges. However, little is yet known about the nursing associate role in primary and community care settings. This paper provides an overview of what is known and introduces some emerging findings from recent research. It highlights some of the benefits that nursing associates can bring to community and primary care nursing teams and some of the challenges that remain in training and embedding nursing associates within these sectors of the health and social care workforce.