Health Secretary Alan Milburn claimed yesterday that the Government was succeeding in bringing more trained nurses back into the health service.

Mr Milburn, who is MP for Darlington, visited the Freeman Hospital, in Newcastle, after figures were released in the NHS Staff Vacancy Survey 2001.

He visited the childcare facilities at the hospital, where babies as young as six weeks old are looked after by trained nursery staff.

Kirsty White, a mother of two and Staff Nurse at the Freeman, said: "The nursery has been a Godsend.

"We have no family in the area who are able to help, and it is difficult to get childminders who are able to cope with our shift patterns."

New figures show that the Government is well on its way to meeting its target of an extra 20,000 nurses in the NHS by 2005.

It shows that in March 2001 there were fewer nursing posts vacant than in March 2000.

Additional figures published yesterday show that the Government has been successful in encouraging former nurses and midwives back to the NHS.

Since April 2001, an extra 713 have come back, while a further 1,957 are waiting to join them and are on refresher training courses.

Mr Milburn said: "We are clearly turning the corner on nurse and midwife recruitment.

"Money is now reaching the front line and as a result, new job vacancies are being filled."