NHS nurses fear quality of care is suffering

A recent survey, published in a new RCN report, revealed 30,000 nurses are too busy to relieve patient’s pain or give them their medication on time, due to mounting pressures within the NHS. According to the survey, around 53% of nurses fear the quality of care is suffering. Staff shortages often mean nurses are left

Day in the life of an apprentice

Meet Sean, he is a Sales Consultant apprentice for our Radiology team. Find out here what his day-to-day life is like at Athona. What does a typical day look like for you? A typical day for me is coming in at 8:20 and sorting out my emails from the evening before, making sure anything I

Latest Appraisal for Revalidation Success

We are delighted to announce that according to the latest Annual Organisational Audit (AOA) Comparator Report from NHS England, we have excelled compared to our competitors. In the latest report comparing locum agency designated bodies and national appraisal statistics, our missed appraisals percentage stands at just 0.7%, in contrast to our competitors who received 6.3%.

The National Education Union Launches

Voted for by its members, the amalgamation of the Association of Teachers and Leaders and the National Union of Teachers means the National Education Union (NEU) will be the largest education union in Europe. Choosing the new academic year as the moment to launch their joint venture, the union will represent a majority of teachers

Almost five times as many freshers disclose mental health condition

New figures show the number of first-year students heading to university and disclosing a mental illness has risen almost five times in a decade. The figures note women undergraduates are more likely to register a mental illness, with 2.5 per cent doing so, compared to 1.4 per cent of men. However researchers at the Institute

30-hours free childcare scheme described as ‘chaos’

With the Government’s new childcare scheme coming into force in England today, a third of nurseries fear closing due to the increase in financial pressures. The new scheme allows three and four year olds to be offered 30 free hours of childcare a week, an increase of double from the previous 15 hours. Although local

Meet our newest apprentice graduate

After joining us last August, our latest apprenticeship graduate, Jess, has spent the past year with our education team. Working closely alongside our primary team as an account manager, Jess will continue with the success she has already achieved in this role and begin her full-time recruitment career here at Athona. We spoke to Jess

September classroom set up

We’ve all started the academic year with the best intentions to follow through with initiatives. But in the general buzz of everyday, they often get forgotten. Below are our easy, practical top tips to help you set up your classroom for the year. Staying organised Have a tray for each class as somewhere for spare

A study predicts the UK needs 71,000 more care home spaces

A study has found an extra 71,000 care home spaces are needed in the next eight years to cope with Britain’s increased demand, as people are living longer and face more health problems. Estimated research predicts there will be an extra 353,000 older people with more complex needs by 2025, which will increase the amounts

We’re celebrating #BookLoversDay

In the midst of today’s busy world, it’s always nice to take some time out and kick-back with an old favourite book or delve into the world of a new author’s imagination. So, in honour of this year’s #BookLoversDay we asked our employees for their favourite book or author recommendations! Check out below to see

Thousands of new posts for the mental health sector

Health secretary, Jeremy Hunt, has announced plans to expand mental health provisions by injecting an extra £1.3 billion – resulting in thousands of new posts created within the NHS. The aim is to recruit enough nurses, therapists and consultants to treat an extra one million patients by 2020-21. Whilst this is positive news, Mr Hunt

Report finds reading at home boosts student achievement

A recent report by the Social Market Foundation has discovered that children perform better in tests when they’ve had a routine of reading at home with a parent/carer. The report found that young people who had not been read to before the age of five scored lower in reasoning tests. In response, the foundation have

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