THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF NURSING OF THE UNITED KINGDOM

							                 The Royal College of Nursing Charitable Trust

                                 RCN Scholarships 2009


The RCN Scholarships
A number of scholarships, including Trevor Clay Scholarships and Peter Holgate Scholarships,
of up to £3,000 each for professional development to improve patient care available to RCN
members except those in student membership. Funding for course fees, practice development
projects, or study visits may be applied for. Applications must have relevance to one of the
following RCN priorities:

       Developing Nursing Practice
       Education


                                    Terms and Conditions

The 2009 RCN Scholarships are open to applicants who:

   are in current RCN membership except for the exclusions below*
   wish to undertake a project or studies relevant to the current RCN priorities; and
   fully complete the application form and provide the relevant statement as specified on pages 3
    & 4; and
   obtain a supporting signature from a line manager/personal tutor; and
   meet the closing date of 20 May 2009

Successful applicants will be expected to:

   take up the scholarship within 12 months; and
   be prepared to write an article or submit any of their work to an RCN publication or any other
    nursing journal, make a presentation at an RCN conference, or report back to the RCN as
    otherwise required; and
   acknowledge the source of funding in any dissemination of the funded work; and
   agree to allow the work to be used by the RCN in an appropriate manner; and
   agree to notify the RCN and return funds in the event of either receiving funding elsewhere
    for the same activity or not completing the activity for which funds were allocated

Applicants should also note the following:

   Applications will be anonymised and double marked. The decision of the judges will be final
    and unfortunately feedback will not be available for unsuccessful applications.
   Priority may be given to first time applicants at the discretion of the judges.
   Once awarded, Scholarships are not transferable to other activities.




* Members of RCN Council, student members, and members of RCN staff are not eligible.

                                                               Please keep pages 1-4 for future reference
                      Timescale and information about the funding

If you would like your application acknowledged when it is received, please enclose an SAE.

All applicants will be notified of the outcome of their application, in writing, by 7 August 2009.

The funding may not be used for:

          salaries, subsistence, or replacement staff costs; or
          purchase of equipment e.g. IT or books which may be used on a personal
           basis after completion of the study; or
          retrospective funding, i.e. for any activity completed before 7 August 2009

In respect of payment, the RCN will normally expect to pay fees for courses or conferences direct
to the course or conference provider. Where this is not possible, the RCN will ask for original
receipts and will not be able to accept photocopies, or electronic copies, of original receipts.
Where funding is awarded for a project or study tour, payments will be made in accordance with
the RCN expenses policy.

                                          How to apply

Applicants are asked to

   fully complete the application form; and
   gain a written and signed statement of support on the application form from their line
    manager, or equivalent; and
   write a 1500 word statement as per the guidance on pages 3 and 4

Then
Submit one original and four copies of your entire application to arrive no later than 20th May
2009 to:

               Moira Lambert
               RCN Scholarships 2009
               Royal College of Nursing
               20 Cavendish Square
               London W1G 0RN

Please note the following:

   Application forms should normally be typewritten. If this is not possible, please
    provide an explanation.
   We regret we are unable to accept faxed or e-mailed applications.
   Applications that do not meet the stated terms and conditions, including the closing date, will
    not be accepted.




                                             Page 2 of 7
                     Guidance on writing your 1500 word statement
                               for an RCN Scholarship


Your 1500-word statement will need to demonstrate relevance to one of the following RCN
priorities:

       Developing Nursing Practice
       Education

These priorities specifically focus on the following:

Developing Nursing Practice

   Development of research evidence-based best practice across the main areas of activity in
    acute and community settings; care of the older person; children’s and young people’s
    services; the management of long term conditions; mental health and learning disabilities
    services.

   Quality assuring emerging care pathways or best practice standards.

   Strengthen and diversify learning and development opportunities for nurses and health care
    assistants from across a range of settings.

   Development of accurate and relevant data about the whole workforce which underpins the
    evidence around the nursing family contribution to patient care outcomes in a variety of
    settings.

   Influence and shape the eHealth agenda as a significant part of delivering the above with
    particular reference to the on-going roll out of electronic patient records across the UK.

Education

   Delivering on Modernising Nursing Careers in securing the delivery of an all graduate
    profession including support for those delivering education and improving access to post
    registration education.

   Addressing student issues such as practice placement development and provision, funding and
    welfare.

   Development of educational standards for Health Care Assistants on the National Career
    Framework




                                             Page 3 of 7
Your 1500-word statement will be assessed as follows:

   Nature of the activity to be undertaken and its contribution to the applicant’s career
    development. If applying for course funding, please give specific details of the course
    outputs/objectives and modular content. (10% marks)
   Potential impact on the care of patients/clients/service delivery, and the anticipated mode of
    dissemination (50% marks)
   Anticipated other benefits, for example, but not exhaustive, employer, community,
    leadership, diversity, and to the RCN (30% marks)
   Clarity and presentation of information (10% marks)


Please note:

   Please include a word count at the end of the statement.
   Statements should normally be typed. If this is not possible, please provide an explanation.
   Applications will be anonymised for judging. Please do not send your CV or put your name
    on your statement. However, if you wish, you can identify it with your RCN number.




                                      Contacting the RCN


If you have an enquiry about your application please contact Moira Lambert, Awards Officer,
RCN, 20 Cavendish Square, London W1G 0RN, telephone 020 7647 3731 or email
moira.lambert@rcn.org.uk




                                             Page 4 of 7
                                           RCN Charitable Trust

                                  Scholarship Application Form 2009

Please fully complete sections 1 to 10. We are unable to process your application if details are missing.

1. Details of activity for which funding is sought

Title of proposed activity:



If you are applying to present at a conference, please attach a copy of your abstract

2. Dates                 Start                                                Finish

3. Details of costs of proposed activity (Please estimate where necessary)

                                                                                          £
                                                                                          £
                                                                                          £
                                                                                  TOTAL   £
Have you sought, or are you seeking, funding from your employer or any other source?          Yes     No

If yes, where?

With what results?



4. Qualifications: (please include courses not yet completed, or with results pending)




5. Previous funding from the RCN
Have you previously received funding from the RCN? Yes               Amount               Year        No




                                                  Page 5 of 7
6. Membership details

 RCN membership number

 Are you a member of any RCN national forums?                             Yes             No
 If yes, please list:


7. Current employment (and/or details of Educational/Training Institution):

 Please confirm whether you work in a hospital or in the community

 JOB TITLE:

 EMPLOYER (Name and address):




 SINCE (Date):

 Have you been awarded study leave?
 If yes, please state how much

 If a student or unemployed, please state educational/training institution and course, or last employer:



8. Supporting statement (Please ask your manager, who may be contacted by us, to complete this section.
Full-time students please ask your personal tutor)

 Please comment on how the proposed study would fit in with the applicant’s role description and
 professional development and how this activity could be supported, e.g. with study leave. Please
 do not refer to the applicant by name.




 How long have you known the applicant and in what capacity?


 Manager’s Name (please print):

 Job Title:


 Manager’s Signature:                                                           Date:


                                                     Page 6 of 7
9. Personal Details                                                     RCN Membership No:

 Surname:                                             First name:                                   Mr/Ms

 Address for correspondence:



 Post Code:

 Telephone No: (work)                                       Telephone No: (home/mobile)

 Email:

10. Eligibility Check List and Application Agreement

I am an RCN member who is eligible to apply
I would be taking up the scholarship within 12 months
I enclose one original and 4 copies of both the form and the statement
I agree to report back as required and allow my work to be used by the RCN

If you are successful, the RCN may wish to publicise your success and/or your work to the media. Please tick
the box if you are happy for your name and place of work to be used for this purpose.

I declare that the work submitted is mine and no part of any publication has been used without consideration
to copyright regulations. I acknowledge that the decision of the Selection Panel is final.
If successful, I agree to notify the RCN and return funds in the event of either receiving funding elsewhere for
the same activity or not completing the activity for which funds were allocated.


Signature of Applicant: ______________________________                       Date: ___________________

                                                Equal Opportunities

Completion of this section is optional but the information is helpful to ensure that we are aware of the communities
applying for this award and assist the implementation of equal opportunities. Please note this information will not
form part of the selection process.

      Asian or Asian British                                  Mixed
      Indian                                                  White and Black Caribbean
      Pakistani                                               White and Black African
      Bangladeshi                                             White and Asian
      Any other Asian background                              Any other mixed background

      Black or Black British                                  White
      Caribbean                                               British
      African                                                 Irish
      Any other Black background                              Any other White background

      Chinese                                                 Any other ethnic group

Gender          Male           Female               Do you have a disability?         Yes           No

Age scale range   (please circle)
<25          25-30        30-35         35-40       40-45       45-50       55-60           60-65    65+



                                                      Page 7 of 7