NURSES will hold strikes just days before Christmas as they step up their campaign for better pay.

Union members from the Royal College of Nursing will hold their first ever walk-out on December 15 and another five days later, on December 20.

The first of it's kind industrial action is likely to cause huge disruptions within the NHS over both winter and the spring as cases of flu and RSV begin to surge.

The decision to strike just days before Christmas is being taken after ministers turned down the RCN’s offer of formal negotiations.

The move marks a winter of discontent as rail workers, posties and civil servants cause huge disruption to the public.

RCN chief Pat Cullen said: "ministers have chosen strike action".

Read more on nurses

Dedicated NHS nurses who save countless lives up for Who Cares Wins Award

PM meets incredible Who Cares Wins nominees for best nurse & midwife

"They have the power and the means to stop this by opening serious talks that address our dispute.

"Nursing staff have had enough of being taken for granted, enough of low pay and unsafe staffing levels, enough of not being able to give our patients the care they deserve."

Will nurses at your hospital or NHS trust go on strike?

Here’s the full list of hospitals that will go on strike between the end of this year and May 2023.

East Midlands

• East Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust
• NHS Derby and Derbyshire ICB (Joined Up Care Derbyshire)
• NHS Nottingham and Nottinghamshire ICB
• Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
• Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
• Derbyshire Community Health Services NHS Foundation Trust
• Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
• Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust
• Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Eastern England

• Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust
• Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• Cambridge University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
• Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
• East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust
• Norfolk Community Health and Care NHS Trust
• Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust
• Cambridgeshire Community Services NHS Trust
• Hertfordshire Community NHS Trust
• West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust
• NHS Hertfordshire and West Essex ICB
• NHS Mid and South Essex ICB
• NHS Norfolk and Waveney ICB
• NHS Suffolk and North East Essex ICB

London

• Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust
• Guys and St Thomas NHS Foundation Trust
• Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Foundation Trust
• Hounslow and Richmond Community Healthcare NHS Trust
• St George's University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust
• Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust
• University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• NHS North Central London ICB
• NHS South West London ICB

North West

• Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust
• Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust
• Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
• Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre NHS Found Trust
• The Christie NHS Foundation Trust
• Wrightington Wigan and Leigh NHS Foundation Trust
• Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
• North West Ambulance Service Trust
• Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• Bridgewater Community Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
• Wirral Community Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust
• Midlands and Lancashire CSU
• Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Found Trust
• Liverpool Women's NHS Foundation Trust
• Central Cheshire Integrated Care Partnership
• St Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
• Alder Hey Children’s NHS Foundation Trust
• The Walton Centre NHS Foundation Trust
• Health Education England
• NHS Cheshire and Merseyside ICB
• NHS Lancashire and South Cumbria ICB
• Cheshire and Wirral Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

Northern England

• North East Ambulance Service NHS Trust
• University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust
• Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
• County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust
• Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust
• The Newcastle Upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• North of England CSU (NECS)

South East

• Kent Community Health NHS Foundation Trust
• East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust
• University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust
• South East Coast Ambulance Service
• Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust
• Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
• Queen Victoria Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
• NHS Kent and Medway ICB
• NHS Surrey Heartlands ICB
• Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust
• Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust
• University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust
• South Central Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust
• Solent NHS Trust
• Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust
• Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust

South West

• Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
• Devon Partnership NHS Trust
• South Western Ambulance Service NHS Found Trust
• Dorset Healthcare University NHS Foundation Trust
• Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• North Bristol NHS Trust
• Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust
• University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust
• University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust
• Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
• NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT)
• Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust
• Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
• Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust
• Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust
• University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust
• Somerset NHS Foundation Trust
• Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust
• Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust
• NHS Bath, North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire ICB (BSW Together)
• NHS Devon ICB (One Devon)
• NHS Dorset ICB (Our Dorset)
• NHS Gloucestershire ICB (One Gloucestershire)

West Midlands

• Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
• Herefordshire and Worcestershire Health and Care NHS Trust
• The Royal Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
• Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust
• Shropshire Community Health NHS Trust
• University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust
• Birmingham Women's and Children's NHS Foundation Trust
• Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
• Dudley Integrated Health and Care NHS Trust
• NHS Birmingham and Solihull ICB (BSol ICB)
• NHS Black Country ICB

Yorkshire & The Humber

• Sheffield Health and Social Care NHS Foundation Trust
• Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
• York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• Leeds Community Healthcare NHS Trust
• Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust
• The Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
• NHS England
• Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust
• NHS West Yorkshire ICB

Wales

• Cardiff and Vale University Health Board
• Powys Teaching Local Health Board
• Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust Headquarters
• Hywel Dda University Health Board
• Swansea Bay University Health Board
• Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board
• Betsi Cadwaladr University Local Health Board
• Velindre NHS Trust
• Public Health Wales
• Health Education and Improvement Wales Health Authority
• NHS Wales Shared Services Partnership
• Digital Health and Care Wales

Scotland

• NHS Borders
• NHS Education For Scotland
• NHS Fife
• NHS National Services Scotland
• NHS Shetland
• NHS Western Isles
• NHS Dumfries and Galloway
• NHS Orkney
• NHS Golden Jubilee
• NHS 24
• The State Hospitals Board for Scotland
• NHS Grampian
• NHS Tayside
• NHS Ayrshire and Arran
• The Highland Council
• Healthcare Improvement Scotland
• Public Health Scotland
• NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde
• Scottish Ambulance Service
• NHS Lothian
• NHS Lanarkshire
• NHS Highland
• NHS Forth Valley

Northern Ireland

• Northern Ireland Practice and Education Council
• Southern Health and Social Care Trust
• Western Health and Social Care Trust
• Belfast Health and Social Care Trust
• Business Services Organisation
• Regulation & Quality Improvement Authority
• Northern Ireland Blood Transfusion Service
• Public Health Agency
• Northern Health and Social Care Trust
• South Eastern Health and Social Care Trust
• Northern Ireland Ambulance Service

Other health unions are also holding strike votes.

A ballot among hundreds of thousands of Unison members closed yesterday, and midwives and physiotherapists are voting on potential walk-outs too.

Most read in Health

Junior doctors will vote in January.

Health Secretary Steve Barclay said: “These are challenging times for everyone and the economic circumstances mean the RCN’s demands, which on current figures are a 19.2 per cent pay rise, costing £10billion a year, are not affordable.”

He added: “Our priority is keeping patients safe. The NHS has tried and tested plans in place to minimise disruption and ensure emergency services continue to operate.”

Read More on The Sun

People are just realising how to unlock supermarket trolley WITHOUT £1 coin

Mike Tindall reveals secrets of staying over at the Palace on I’m A Celeb

But Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting said: “Why on Earth is the Health Secretary refusing to negotiate with nurses?

“Patients already can’t get treated on time, strike action is the last thing they need, yet the Government is letting this happen.

Source: Read Full Article