A Carshalton woman has been named as a finalist in the "most prestigious nursing" awards in the country.

Sandra Bennett beat out more than 700 other hopefuls to make it through to the top five in RCNi Nurse Awards 'leadership category.

Nominated for her ability to lead and empower a diverse team of international nurses within the NHS, Ms Bennett was quick to heap praise on her colleagues.

"The work that my team and I have achieved together is going to make a huge difference to the team’s career prospects and to the patients’ experience within our service," the lead nurse said.

"I hope to be able to influence my colleagues within the rest of the organisation, as well as further afield, that nothing is impossible when you are able to give people the opportunity to develop themselves and reach their true potential."

Ms Bennett noticed that a lot of the nurses she worked with had had traumatic experiences within their jobs.

This included low morale, motivation, trust and confidence, as well as high sickness absence.

These problems were resulting in patient complaints on waiting times and being seen by more than one clinician due to lack of competence.

The Carshalton nurse then had an idea to combat these problems, which has seen her team stand out among their peers.

"I am extremely honoured to be shortlisted for such a prestigious recognition like the RCNi Nurse Award," Ms Bennett said.

"To be recognised for a role that I feel so passionate about and has had a great impact on both patients and staff, I am very humbled."

Managing director at RCNi, Rachel Armitage, noted the "incredible" impact she had on her team of nurses.

"With the nursing shortage high on the national agenda, it’s important that we give nurses like Sandra the recognition they deserve," Ms Armitage said.

"We look forward to celebrating her work at the awards in July.”