Pain is a global health issue effecting millions of people worldwide. Educational preparation of nurses to assess and manage patients suffering pain is recognised as poor. This paper reviews the content of 71 undergraduate nursing programmes in the UK for reference to pain in the curriculum. Pain did not appear in any programme aims or learning outcomes, and was present in only 6 (8.5%) undergraduate programmes. Pain remains a neglected area of the nursing curriculum which nurse educators should include in their curricula.