HEALTH bosses are appealing for more black and Asian nurses to apply for jobs after it was revealed there are just 60 in the Burnley, Pendle and Rossendale area.

The Department of Health is launching a £4million campaign to fill 22,000 vacancies for nurses in England, and is targeting ethnic minorities.

National figures show only 1.4 per cent of all NHS nurses are Asian or black, although they account for four per cent of the workforce.

In Burnley, Pendle and Rossendale, six per cent of the NHS Trust's 1,000-plus staff are Asian or black, but the figure is boosted by a high number of Asian doctors.

Mohammed Ravat, community relations officer at Blackburn NHS Trust, said the biggest problem was recruiting qualified nurses.

Mohamed said: "Traditionally, Asian women are expected to get married and start a family by the time they are 20. In the Pakistani community, many men don't like their wives working, they prefer them to be at home looking after the children.

"So although some young women join as auxiliary nurses, by the time they are 20 they are leaving the workplace, before they qualify.

"Things are changing and many young women have different expectations now and don't want to get married when they are 20. I'm sure long term that will have an impact."