Midwives look after women and their babies during pregnancy, and during and after birth. They give advice to individuals and groups, before and after the birth of a baby. This job is open to both women and men.

The Work

You could be:

• examining a pregnant woman and discussing her options for labour
• giving advice to individuals and giving talks and running classes on contraception, fertility or labour
• assisting at the birth either in hospital or at the woman's home
• administering pain relief to the woman, either injections of pethidine, or gas-and-air delivered by machine
• if labour is difficult, carrying out an episiotomy (surgical cut) and inserting stitches after the birth
• cutting the umbilical cord and if necessary carrying out resuscitation to the baby
• carrying out home visits for up to a month after the birth, checking both mother and baby
• keeping records of patients and their progress.

Pay

On the NHS Agenda for Change salary scale, as a midwife you start on Band 5, £24,670 to £30,742 a year. With experience this would rise to Band 6, £30,401 to £38,046 a year.

A midwife team manager can earn on Band 7, £37,570 to £44,688 a year.

The current pay scales are from April 2019.

Conditions

• You might work in a maternity hospital or the maternity unit of a general hospital.
• You might work in the community, in an antenatal clinic, health centre or doctor’s surgery, or in a midwife-led maternity unit (MLMU).
• You often visit patients in their homes and might assist at home births.
• If you work in hospital, you would work shifts.
• If you work in the community, you would sometimes be on call.
• You would wear a uniform and sometimes protective clothing.

Getting In

• To qualify as a midwife you need to complete a pre-registration degree in midwifery, usually lasting 3 years. Entry requirements are 4 Highers, usually including English and a science subject plus National 5 Maths. You apply through UCAS.
• Approved midwifery degree courses are offered by Edinburgh Napier University, Robert Gordon University and the University of the West of Scotland.
• An Access to nursing and midwifery course may also give entry. However, always check that the course is accepted by the college or university you want to go to before you apply.
• You can qualify first as a registered nurse and then complete a short midwifery training programme.
• Some midwives start their career as a healthcare worker, such as maternity support worker, before going on to study for a degree in midwifery.
• Financial support is available from the Nursing and Midwifery Bursary Section of the Students Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS).
• You will require a satisfactory criminal record check from Disclosure Scotland to show that you are suitable for this type of work. Contact Disclosure Scotland for details on the type you would need.
• You should have a good level of physical fitness and you will have to undergo health screening.
• When you complete your training you must register with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).
• A driving licence is useful.

Most midwives work in the National Health Service (NHS), but you might also be able to work in private hospitals, clinics and the Armed Forces. You can find NHS job vacancies in Scotland by visiting NHS Scotland Recruitment.

Job Outlook Scotland

Job Outlook Scotland and UK

  Scotland

2019

5532

1.6 %

RISE

2024

5619

  United Kingdom

2019

48138

2.2 %

RISE

2024

49221

LMI data powered by EMSI UK

What Does it Take?

You should be:

• able to get on well with people from a wide range of backgrounds
• interested in foetal, and child physical and psychological development
• observant and able to act on your own initiative
• interested in helping women and babies
• able to answer questions and give advice
• patient and tactful
• practical and not squeamish
• willing to take responsibility and remain calm in stressful situations.

Training

• Once you have gained your NMC registration, training is on the job.
• During your first year as a qualified midwife you would get extra support and guidance through the Flying Start Programme.
• To continue working as a nurse you must renew your registration with the NMC every three years.

Getting On

• With experience you could progress to a senior post such as senior charge midwife or a consultant midwife.
• To renew your registration you must keep your skills and knowledge up to date, by undertaking at least 35 hours of relevant study and 450 practice hours every three years. This is known as Continuing Professional Development (CPD).
• You could become self-employed, as a private midwife.
• With further training you could work in a specific area of midwifery such as ultrasound or neonatal, or working with teenage mums.
• You might find work abroad. This is easier if you are also a registered nurse as some countries do not accept the direct midwifery qualification.

More Information

The Scottish Government runs the One Year Job Guarantee (OYJG) Scheme for newly qualified nurses and midwives to help improve their chances of finding work as well as developing their skills. The positions are one-year fixed term contracts at 22.5 hours a week, set at grade 5 on the NHS Agenda for Change pay scale. For further details contact NHS Education for Scotland.

The Royal College of Midwifery has an excellent resource on their website, Want to be a Midwife?, which includes videos on people working in the profession.

Video

Contacts

The following organisations may be able to provide further information.