The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) has used one of its motions at the 2025 TUC Congress to shine a light on the ongoing challenges facing student and newly-qualified midwives. Financial hardship while studying midwifery, the accrual of significant debt, juggling childcare with clinal placement and the uncertainty of not finding full-time employment upon graduation are among the key challenges facing its members, says the RCM. Moving the RCM’s motion, workplace representative Sue Chittick highlighted the RCM’s calls for the forgiveness of maintenance loans after three years of service in the NHS, specific to the country in which they qualified.