Catalogue description Records of the United Kingdom Central Council for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting

Following the report of the Committee on Nursing (Briggs Report), the Briggs Co-ordinating Committee was established in 1976 to formulate a new statutory framework for nursing education. The work of the latter committee resulted in the Nurses, Midwives and Health Visitors Act 1979, which came into force on 1 July 1983. This act reorganised the administration of the qualification and registration of nursing staff. It abolished a number of supervisory bodies which were replaced by the United Kingdom Central Council for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting (UKCC) and four National Boards.

The UKCC was given responsibility for the maintenance of a central register of nurses, midwives and health visitors; it was also empowered to set out rules governing the education and training requirements for admission to the register. UKCC operated through a number of committees, the membership of which included members of the four National Boards. The National Boards (one each for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland) were required to ensure that appropriate training courses were provided to enable people to meet the standards necessary for admission to the register.

Under the Nurses, Midwives and Health Visitors Act 1992, the responsibility for the investigation of alleged misconduct was wholly transferred from the four National Boards to UKCC.

This structure survived up to April 2002, when the UKCC ceased to exist and its functions were taken over by a new Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC). The English National Board was also abolished and its quality assurance function was taken on board by the NMC. The other National Boards were also abolished, but new bodies were created in each country to take over their functions.