Midwife jobs

Video: Things To Love About Being A Midwife

In this video Louisa, a Midwife, explains five things she loves about being a midwife.

Midwifery Jobs: Frequently Asked Questions

(Updated Dec 2024)

How Do You Become A Midwife?

To apply for a Midwifery role, you’ll need a degree in Midwifery. Entry requirements for relevant universities can vary, but typically you’ll need five GCSEs at grade A-C, and two or three A-levels.

Here's all the information you need if you want to know how to become a midwife.

What Skills Do You Need To Be A Midwife?

You’ll need a fairly specific set of skills. On a day-to-day basis you’ll be providing support to mothers during pregnancy, labour, childbirth and in the first few days after a baby is born.

So you’ll need huge emotional strength, a calm and caring nature, plenty of patience – and in particular, the ability to make decisions and use your initiative in high-pressure situations.

What Does A Midwife Do?

Typical responsibilities include:

• Antenatal care, including screening tests in the hospital, community and the home

• Identifying high risk pregnancies and making referrals to specialists

• Providing counselling and advice for various scenarios, from pregnancy complications to birthing plans

• Supervising and assisting labour, including drug and pain management

• Giving support and advice on caring for the baby, including breastfeeding and bathing

• Liaising with other health and social care providers

What Band Is A Midwife, And How Much Does A Midwife Get Paid?

Newly qualified NHS Midwives earn the same amount as Nurses, starting at Band 5 on the official pay-scale.

Currently, that means newly qualified Midwives will earn more than £29,000 a year – rising incrementally for every year of service until you reach the top of the banding.

Thereafter, salary increases depend on gaining promotions to upper bandings, which normally require further study and gaining more experience.

At supervisor level, you can expect to earn upwards of £45,000; at consultant level, you can earn in excess of £70,000.

To find out more about salary bandings in the NHS, check out our NHS pay band calculator.

How Much Do Private Midwives Earn?

In the private sector, Midwife salaries are far less structured. Midwives will typically transfer across from the NHS, and it’s an increasingly common career move as many expectant mothers opt to hire Midwives privately.

Average salaries are hard to measure, but it’s widely suggested that pay can be higher, while benefits are typically worse than they are in the NHS.

In the NHS for example, Midwives can expect excellent holiday entitlement, sick pay, maternity pay and pension contributions.

In the private sector, none of this is guaranteed above a statutory level.

As a result, choosing between the private and public sector is about more than just pay.

Find Your Next Midwifery Job Today

View our latest Midwifery Jobs above.

Or if you can’t find what you’re looking for, create an account and register your CV here and we’ll send you the latest roles as soon as they come up.