NLS (Newborn Life Support) Course

Launched in 1999, Resuscitation Council UK’s Newborn Life Support course teaches the knowledge and skills to:

• approach the management of a newborn infant requiring assistance during the first 10-20 minutes in a competent manner;
• understand the processes underlying apnoea, bradycardia and poor condition at birth;
• initiate resuscitation of the newborn infant;
• deliver practical airway management and ventilatory support. 

Who is the course for?

The NLS course is designed for any healthcare professional involved in the delivery and care of the newborn infant. This includes both junior and senior medical and nursing staff, midwives, paramedics and resuscitation officers.

All applicants must hold a professional healthcare qualification or be in training for a professional healthcare qualification.

Unlike many of our other courses, there is no NLS recertification course. The NLS course is appropriate for first-time Candidates as well as those looking to renew their NLS certification.

The Resuscitation Council UK (RCUK) Newborn Life Support (NLS) course is relevant to healthcare professionals, including foundation and specialist trainees, nursing staff and allied health professionals.

This curriculum map has been produced by the RCUK to illustrate the potential key capabilities that may be achieved when undertaking or instructing on an NLS course. 

  indicates a capability highly likely to be achieved and ( ) indicates a capability that might be achieved by attending or instructing on the relevant RCUK course. Any capability achieved during a RCUK course will need to be accompanied by appropriate supporting evidence, and this responsibility lies with the individual. 

This list is not exhaustive and other capabilities may be achieved based upon individual experiences. 

Please click on the relevant curriculum or training programme to download how the RCUK NLS course may support the acquisition of key capabilities within specialist learning objectives for career or training progression. 

Royal College of Paediatric and Child Health (RCPCH) Progress+ 

2023 RCPCH Curriculum 

• Core training
• Speciality training
• Higher speciality training

2018 RCPCH curriculum

• Level 1
• Level 2
• Level 3
• Higher specialist training

BAPM Advanced Neonatal Nurse Practitioner Capabilities Framework

• Pillar 1: Clinical skills
• Pillar 2: Leadership
• Pillar 3: Education
• Pillar 4: Research

This is a one-day course and will take place in a Course Centre. There are many Course Centres across the UK.

We use our evidence-based guidelines and cutting-edge research to create our courses. Courses are then delivered by members of our dedicated and highly skilled Instructor base. This guarantees that our courses are uniform, and the content remains the same across all our Course Centres.

Pre-course preparation:

Candidates receive their NLS manual one month before the start of the course. Candidates should prepare for the course by reading the manual and completing the online pre-course MCQ (multiple-choice question) paper.

Programme:

This course consists of lectures, practical skills stations and teaching simulations.

Download the full programme

Assessment and certification:

NLS is assessed based on the completion of an MCQ paper, and an airway test that will allow Candidates to demonstrate the core skills in airway management that are covered on the course.

Successful Candidates receive a Resuscitation Council UK NLS provider certificate, which is valid for four years.

This course is recognised as continuing professional development (CPD) by the Medical, Dental and Nursing Royal Colleges and Health Care Professional Council. Please contact your registering body for further information. 

The first step is to find a Course Centre near you. Below, you’ll find an area where you can search for local courses and find out how to get in touch with the organiser.

Course fees are decided locally by the Course Centre; Resuscitation Council UK only charges the Course Centre £29.90 per Candidate registration and £18.40 per NLS manual.
 
Courses often book quickly, so we would advise planning your attendance well in advance of when you want to train.