The chairman of a national review into nursing care has praised the way new recruits are trained after visiting students in Norfolk.

Lord Willis, who is the chairman of the national Shape of Caring Review to make sure that the NHS gives nurses the right education to meet the needs of the population over the next 15 years, met with students at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital and James Paget University Hospital this week.

He also met with staff and students from Norwich Community Health and Care to hear how the Collaborative Learning in Practice (CLiP) project is working in community nursing.

CLiP has been developed in partnership between the University of East Anglia and Health Education East of England, with pilots at three NHS trusts in Norfolk. The pilots have been so successful that the approach is being rolled out across the east of England.

Nurses on the CLip programme spend 50pc of their time on wards and in clinical settings.

Lord Willis said: 'I was very impressed with the students on the CLiP project who were able to demonstrate that this method of practice education improved their confidence and competence in both clinical and managerial skills. Importantly, early patient outcome data suggests improved patient experience and ultimately this will be the best endorsement of the CLiP approach to student practice.'

Kathy Branson, project director for Health Education East of England, added: 'Student nurses value highly the time they spend in practice; working with patients in clinical settings and supported by experienced staff. This project gives students more opportunity to practice their clinical skills and also provides trained staff with more support, so that they can concentrate on students' learning.'