Timeline: Key events in the history of the NHS and nursing

Nursing Times has compiled the following timeline to highlight key events affecting nurses and midwives in the NHS over the last 75 years of its history, as part of our anniversary coverage.

You can find much more about many of the key events featured in this timeline in the Nursing Times Archive, where you can read how they were covered at the time.

Nye Bevan at Park Hospital (Credit: Daily Herald Archive, National Science and Media Museum)

HMT Empire Windrush

Edinburgh's nursing studies unit was based initially in a flat (Source: University of Edinburgh)

The 1960s see the end of the traditional matron role (Allan Cash Picture Library/Alamy Stock Photo)

Founder of the UK hospice movement Dame Cicely Saunders (Credit: St Christopher's Hospice)

Cover of the Briggs report (Source: Mavinhealthhistory)

Keith Castle after his heart transplant (Source: Alamy Stock Photo)

Nurses took industrial action in the 1980s (Nils Jorgensen/Rex Features)

Opening the doors again after the pandemic (Source: Florence Nightingale Museum)

Nurse leader Nola Ishmael

NICE headquarters in London (Source: Alamy Stock Photo)

Cover of the NHS Plan (Credit: Steve Ford)

Gordon Brown holds a surgical stocking at King's College Hospital (Source: Alamy Stock Photo)

Robert Francis at the press conference for his report on Mid Staffs

London 2012 Olympics opening ceremony (Source: Alamy Stock Photo)

Nursing associate Sagila Thiruthanikasalan on the picket line in London (Credit: Wilde Fry)

There are now an estimated 564 million NHS patient interactions with GP, community, hospital, mental health and ambulance services each year – equivalent to 1.5 million contacts every day.

You can find much more about many of the key events featured in this timeline in the Nursing Times Archive, where you can browse issues of the journal dating back to 1905.

You can also find news and features about the history of nursing, including the NHS and key figures from the profession's past, on our History of nursing page.

Key events during the late 1940s 1948 1949 Key events during the 1950s 1950 1951 1956 1957 1958 1959 Key events during the 1960s 1960 1961 1962 1963 1966 1967 1968 1969 Key events during the 1970s 1972 1974 1975 1977 1978 1979 Key events during the 1980s 1982 1983 1988 1989 Key events during the 1990s 1990 1991 1993 1994 1995 1998 1999 Key events during the 2000s 2000 2002 2004 2005 2007 2009 Key events during the 2010s 2010 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Key events during the 2020s 2020 2022 2023 Steve Ford