THE Royal Bolton Hospital has offered 48 jobs to new recruits as part of a campaign to attract local and regional staff.

Around 70 people attended a special recruitment day at the hospital aimed at filling current vacancies.

Trusts nationally have been having difficulties recruiting UK nurses, and in the past the Bolton NHS Foundation Trust — which runs the Royal Bolton as well as services in the community —has hired staff from Spain, Portugal and the Philippines.

In December, 2013, The Bolton News revealed that the Royal Bolton Hospital was looking abroad to find new recruits after struggling to fill vacancies for 50 nursing roles.

The trust undertook an international nurse recruitment programme the following year and hired 30 nurses from Spain and Portugal.

In 2002, hospital chiefs turned to Filipino nurses to fill staffing shortfalls, and 24 arrived in Bolton in 2002.

Trish Armstrong-Child, Trust Director of Nursing, said she was delighted with the success of the open day.

Dr Keith McNeil, chief executive of Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge, said hiring large numbers of overseas nurses “distracting, frustrating and expensive” and urged officials to improve UK recruitment.

She said: “Our international recruits have made a valuable contribution, but we felt that this time we needed to turn to local recruitment first. It is great to know that after hearing about the role of nurses in Bolton so many people at the open day decided they wanted to join the team. We are looking forward to welcoming them.”

Jobs were offered to 27 registered nurses, five health care assistants and 16 students who would start in 2016.

The newly appointed registered nurses will fill 40 current vacancies at this level. The Trust was so pleased with the success of the recruitment day that it is planning more, the first to be at the end of October.