How to Plan a Level 6 Nursing Practice-Change Leadership Presentation: Slides, Transcript and Criticality
Quick answer: A strong Level 6 nursing practice-change leadership presentation spends most of its time on leadership, not on describing the clinical change. Choose a specific, evidence-backed change, rationalise it with current national guidance, show how you would lead and monitor it as a newly qualified nurse, and reflect critically on your own skills. Keep each slide short and use the transcript for extended discussion.
Final-year adult nursing students often feel pulled in two directions: explain the change in detail, or show leadership. Markers want the second. This guide explains how to plan a 13 to 15 minute presentation of six to seven slides, how to split content between slides and transcript, and how to build criticality. A worked sample, for reference only, shows the approach using a falls-risk assessment example.
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What this type of brief really asks
Briefs of this kind typically ask you to propose a change you would introduce as a newly qualified nurse and emerging leader, improving patient care and reducing clinical risk. You are then expected to rationalise the need, describe how you would lead implementation, explain how you would monitor success, and critically reflect on your own leadership development. Confidentiality is a graded expectation, so do not name a trust, ward or patient.
The assessment is therefore about you as a future leader. The clinical topic is the vehicle. A modest change that you can analyse deeply usually scores higher than an ambitious one described superficially.
Step-by-step plan
- Pick a focused change. Choose something observed in practice, safe to propose, and supported by current guidance. Examples include improved falls case-finding, pressure ulcer prevention checks, or structured handover.
- Check the evidence base. Use the latest national guidance, such as the relevant NICE guideline, plus recent peer-reviewed research. Confirm dates and versions before citing.
- Link to the NMC. Name the Future Nurse proficiency platform that fits, such as Platform 6, Improving safety and quality of care, and the relevant Code theme.
- Choose a leadership framework. Kotter or Lewin for change, and a values-based approach such as compassionate leadership, are common and defensible. Explain how each fits a newly qualified nurse.
- Design monitoring. Define process, outcome and balancing measures, and a small-scale test of change with review points.
- Reflect critically. Identify strengths, gaps and a development plan with named actions.
- Write the transcript, then trim the slides. Slides should carry headings, key points and citations, not paragraphs.
Slides versus transcript: what goes where
| Element | On the slide | In the transcript |
|---|---|---|
| Rationale | Two or three bullet points and citations | Evidence discussion, local context, limits of evidence |
| Change | Simple diagram or short list | Rationale for the design, what is not included and why |
| Leadership | Model name and stakeholder map | Critical discussion of the model’s strengths and weaknesses |
| Monitoring | Table of measures | How data will be used and shared |
| Reflection | Three strengths, three development needs | Evidence from feedback and placement experience |
Most briefs of this type require a citation on every slide, so check your layout leaves room for them.
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Comparing candidate changes
Before committing, test two or three ideas against the same criteria. The table is a model; adapt the criteria to your own setting.
| Criterion | Why it matters | Question to ask |
|---|---|---|
| Evidence base | Markers expect current, credible sources | Is there recent national guidance and peer-reviewed support? |
| Feasibility for an NQN | Shows realism about your role | Can a newly qualified nurse influence this without formal authority? |
| Risk reduction | The brief links change to clinical risk | What harm does the change reduce, and for whom? |
| Measurability | Monitoring must be credible | Can I collect process and outcome data easily? |
| Leadership scope | The task rewards leadership discussion | Does it involve stakeholders, resistance and culture? |
A timed structure for a 14-minute script
Write to time rather than to a word count alone. A rough guide is one minute for the title slide and agenda, two to three minutes for the rationale, two for the change itself, three for leadership, two to three for monitoring and sustaining culture, and two for critical reflection and the conclusion. Read the script aloud once with a timer, because written text almost always runs longer than expected. Mark the points where you can shorten if you overrun, and keep your best critical analysis in the middle sections so it is never the part that gets cut.
Confidentiality in practice
Describe settings in general terms, such as “a community nursing team”, and avoid dates, locations, staff roles that identify individuals, and patient details. If you refer to an incident or an audit, anonymise it fully or present it as a hypothetical. State on the title slide or in your opening remarks that the presentation complies with the NMC Code on confidentiality. This simple step reassures markers and protects you.
Building criticality
Being critical is different from being negative. It means questioning assumptions, comparing options and weighing evidence. Here are four practical ways to do it.
- Challenge the obvious solution. Current guidance may not support the first idea that comes to mind. For falls, NICE’s 2025 guideline recommends against using risk prediction tools to predict who will fall, which changes how an assessment improvement should be framed.
- Critique the model. Change models tend to look linear on paper. Note where real teams, especially community teams, differ.
- Admit evidence limits. Your own observations are not an audit. Say what would be needed to confirm the problem.
- Link to your own development. Explain how you would handle resistance, workload and your status as a new registrant.
Mark-maximising checklist
- Six to seven slides, including the title slide, within the time limit.
- A citation on every slide, in Harvard style.
- A named NMC platform and Code theme.
- No identifiable trust, ward, staff or patient details.
- A leadership model applied and critiqued.
- Measures that include a balancing measure.
- A reflective section with specific actions.
- A transcript that matches the slides and the time.
Common mistakes
- Spending half the talk on the clinical problem. Keep the rationale to roughly a fifth of the time.
- Describing leadership theory without applying it. Show what you would do on a Monday morning.
- Ignoring monitoring. A change without measures is an intention, not a plan.
- Over-relying on older guidance. Check that the guideline you cite is current.
- Dense slides. Reading text aloud wastes time and loses marks for communication.
- Breaching confidentiality. Even small identifiers can be a problem.
What students worry about
Students on forums and Q&A sites often ask whether they can propose a change that has already been tried, how critical is critical enough, and how to time a spoken script. In short, a change that already exists locally is acceptable if you analyse why it is not working. Criticality means weighing alternatives and evidence, not finding fault. A script of around 140 words a minute is a sensible planning guide, so a 14-minute talk needs about 1,900 to 2,000 words. Practise aloud early, because pacing problems are far easier to fix before the final recording than after it.
For broader nursing support, see our nursing assignment help and adult nursing assignment help. If you want slide design help, there is a PowerPoint presentation service. You can also read what students say on our reviews page, or browse briefs in the questions archive.
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FAQs
How many slides should I use?
Follow your brief. Briefs of this type commonly allow six to seven slides including the title slide, so plan for that range and check yours.
Should I name the NMC platform?
Yes. Naming the platform, for example Platform 6, Improving safety and quality of care, shows alignment with registration standards.
Which change model should I choose?
Kotter’s eight steps or Lewin’s three stages both work. Pick the one you can apply to your setting and critique honestly.
How do I show leadership as a newly qualified nurse?
Focus on influence, role-modelling, building coalitions and supporting colleagues, not on formal authority.
Can I include images on slides?
Yes, if they add meaning, are properly cited and contain no identifiable information.
What should the transcript contain?
The extended discussion: evidence, critique, reasoning and reflection that cannot fit on slides.
About the expert
Sophie Adams holds an MSc in Adult Nursing from Kingston University London and works as a professional nurse in a UK city hospital, according to her profile.
References
- Kotter, J.P. (1996) Leading change. Boston: Harvard Business School Press.
- National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (2025) Falls: assessment and prevention in older people and in people 50 and over at higher risk. NICE guideline NG249. Available at: https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng249
- Nursing and Midwifery Council (2018) Future nurse: Standards of proficiency for registered nurses. Available at: https://www.nmc.org.uk/standards/standards-for-nurses/standards-of-proficiency-for-registered-nurses/
- Nursing and Midwifery Council (2018) The Code. Available at: https://www.nmc.org.uk/standards/code/
- Taylor, M.J. et al. (2014) ‘Systematic review of the application of the plan-do-study-act method to improve quality in healthcare’, BMJ Quality & Safety, 23(4), pp. 290-298.
