Nurses in Norfolk and Waveney are set to return to the picket lines later this month after rejecting an improved pay offer from the government.

The Royal College of Nursing has confirmed its members have vote down the Department of Health and Social Care's latest efforts to bring its industrial action to an end.

The government department had hoped that a 5pc pay rise and one-off payments of up to £3,789 would be enough for nurses to call off future strikes.

But after 54pc of the union's members voted to decline the offer, nurses are set to return to the picket lines over the bank holiday at the end of the month.

In a letter to health secretary Steve Barclay, RCN general secretary Pat Cullen wrote: “What has been offered to date is simply not enough.

"The government needs to increase what has already been offered and we will be highly critical of any move to reduce it.

“Since our talks in February, we have seen the pressures on the NHS continue to increase.

"The crisis in our health and care services cannot be addressed without significant action that addresses urgent recruitment and retention issues and nursing pay to bring this dispute to a close urgently.

“Until there is a significantly improved offer, we are forced back to the picket line."

Mr Barclay described the decision to reject the offer as "hugely disappointing".

He said: "The NHS staff council, which recommended this offer, covers a number of trade unions who are continuing to vote, and I hope this offer secures the support of a majority of members."

It comes following a 96-hour strike which concluded today.

Meanwhile, NHS workers in the Unison union, which includes cleaners and similar non-medical workers, voted in favour of the offer.

The next RCN strike takes place between 8pm on April 30 and 8pm on May 2.

Nurses from following Norfolk organisations will take part:

  • Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital
  • Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust
  • Norfolk Community Health Care Trust
  • NHS Norfolk and Waveney