Neonatal nurse accused of faking qualifications claims there was bullying on ward

A woman accused of faking her CV to get a job on a neonatal unit has said she was suspended two days after raising concerns about bullying by “a matriarch of nurses”.

Tanya Nasir defended her qualifications despite saying she couldn’t fully remember her degree grade.

The mother of two also told the jury she’d decided to become a nurse in order to help others after living in a refuge.

The 45-year-old, originally from Hertfordshire, was suspended from the Princess of Wales Hospital in February 2020 after concerns were raised over "inconsistencies" in her CV. She was appointed as a Band 7 Ward Manager on the Bridgend hospital’s neonatal ward, where she worked for 5 months from September 2019.

Speaking for the first time at Cardiff Crown Court today, Ms Nasir explained how the unit “had a lot of problems” and described a “matriarch of nurses” who perpetrated the alleged bullying.

“There was a lot of work to do in terms of bringing things up to standard. I wouldn’t say I felt welcomed by everybody. Some of the nurses were really being bullied - they were working in fear,” she said.

Ms Nasir said she raised her concerns under the whistleblowing policy; but two days after meeting with the Deputy Head of Nursing, she was informed that she was being suspended.

Earlier in the day, Ms Nasir told the court how she’d worked part-time - as a cleaner, dinner lady, and self-employed courier - alongside her studies. When asked what the result of her first degree in Physics and Astrophysics was - a qualification the court had previously heard was fake - she replied, “A pass, I think. I can’t remember.”

Ms Nasir also told the jury she’d decided to become a nurse after spending time in a refuge. She described a “difficult relationship” with her former partner and father of her children, calling him a “violent alcoholic”. She eventually left him and stayed in a refuge with her two children.

“That was the reason I started nursing - because of the people I met in the refuge. I wanted to help.”

Ms Nasir was suspended from her job in February 2020 before resigning in November 2021. She denies all nine counts against her.

The trial continues.

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