Employment Terms & Conditions - Leave and Absence

• Grade 1–3                  26 days on appointment increasing by 1 day each leave year up to 29 days (pro rata)
• Grade 4–5                  28 days on appointment increasing by 1 day each leave year up to 31 days (pro rata)
• Grade 6 and above  38 days (pro rata)

Leave entitlements are adjusted on a pro rata basis accordingly for staff who work part-time.  Part-time members of staff, with the exception of Academic staff, and some staff who have non-standard working patterns receive their annual leave entitlement in hours.

The annual leave year for Academic Staff and all staff on Grade 10 and above is 1 September to 31 August.  For all other staff the leave year is 1 April to 31 March. Any staff who have a leave year of April to March are able to take leave up to the end of the week in which Easter Monday falls, or until the end of March, whichever is the later.

Leave entitlements will be adjusted with immediate effect, if an individual’s grade, working pattern or hours change during the course of the leave year. 

Annual leave should normally be booked and managed using iTrent Self-Service.  Managers will agree other protocols for requesting annual leave with their staff, where this is not the case.  The timing of annual leave is subject to a manager’s agreement and dependent upon the needs of the Faculty/Service.  Leave must be appropriately authorised in advance.

All staff are entitled to 8 statutory bank holiday days (pro rata) as follows:

• New Year’s Day; Good Friday; Easter Monday; May Day; Spring Bank Holiday; Late Summer Bank Holiday; Christmas Day; and Boxing Day.

Part-time members of staff who receive their annual leave entitlement in hours, are given a pro rata entitlement for bank holidays, based on their contracted weekly hours.  At the start of the leave year, staff are required to submit a holiday request for all those bank holidays which fall on a day of the week on which they would normally work, using iTrent Self-Service.

Our University is closed between Christmas and the New Year in the interests of efficiency over the Christmas period.  The majority of staff who normally work on these days are not required to attend at work.

In the event of sickness absence, staff are responsible for ensuring that our University’s sickness absence reporting requirements are met.  Staff should speak to their immediate manager on the first day of their absence, within half an hour of their scheduled/normal start time or sooner as applicable, for example to allow sufficient time to put arrangements in place to cover lectures, meetings and other scheduled work.

Staff are required to provide the following information:

• The exact nature of the illness
• Any work commitments for that day that will need covering or re-arranging
• If the absence is connected to an accident at work
• The expected duration of the absence and anticipated return to work date
• A contact telephone number

For further information, please refer to our requirements for Sickness Reporting. 

In the event that a member of staff falls ill during a period of annual leave, the member of staff will be regarded as being absent due to sickness for the period specified on a Statement of Fitness for Work or 'Fit Note'.

In such circumstances, only days covered by a 'Fit Note' can be reclaimed as annual leave; staff are not be able to reclaim annual leave by self-certifying the period of absence.  Any charges incurred for obtaining a 'Fit Note' from a GP/medical practitioner would be the responsibility of staff and are payable by staff.   Staff must make arrangements to reclaim any such annual leave within a period of 4 weeks.

Staff must notify the appropriate manager or nominated person of the absence in accordance with our Sickness Absence Management Policy and Procedure. Staff are required to ensure any 'Fit Notes' are sent to the manager by the earliest practicable date, ensuring compliance with the policy and procedure.

There is provision to request paid time off for a range of public duties and special circumstances including the following:

• Jury Service, Court and Tribunal Attendance
• Voluntary Public Service (e.g. School Governors, Magistrates, Territorial Army, Local Councillors)
• Special Leave (Dependants Leave, Domestic Emergency, Medical Emergency, Medical Screening)
• Bereavement and Funeral Leave

Any requests for time off are subject to approval in accordance with the policy.  For further information, please refer to our Time Off for Public Duties and Special Leave Policy.

Staff that have been given approval and full funding to undertake an accredited/formal programme of study are entitled to paid time off for attendance at exams (falling within normal working time) at the rate of ½ day per exam, subject to a maximum of 2 days per annum.  For further information, please refer to our People Development Policy.

Our Adoption Leave policy aims to ensure fair and consistent treatment of staff who are adopting children.  The policy sets out statutory adoption rights and additional contractual benefits offered by our University as well as the administrative processes to be followed by individuals wishing to request time off under the provisions.  For further information, please refer to our Adoption Leave Policy.

Our Maternity Leave policy aims to ensure fair and consistent treatment of staff who are pregnant.  The policy sets out statutory maternity rights and additional contractual benefits offered by our University as well as the administrative processes to be followed by individuals wishing to request time off under the provisions.  For further information, please refer to our Maternity Leave Policy.

Our Paternity Leave policy aims to ensure fair and consistent treatment of staff who have, or expect to have, responsibility for the upbringing of a child.  The policy sets out statutory paternity rights and additional contractual benefits offered by our University as well as the administrative processes to be followed by individuals wishing to request time off under the provisions.  For further information, please refer to our Paternity Leave Policy.

Parental leave allows parents (including long term foster parents) to take unpaid time off work to look after their children, to make arrangements for their children’s welfare or to spend more time with their children.

Our University has extended the statutory entitlement to enable staff to take parental leave up to their child’s 18th birthday.

Subject to one year’s continuous service, each parent can take up to a total of 18 weeks unpaid parental leave for each child.  Leave can be taken in blocks of one week or more, up to a maximum of four weeks in any one year for each child.

The entitlement for parents of disabled children can be taken in days, rather than in blocks of one week or more.

Staff must give at least 21 days’ notice of their intention to take parental leave. 

Retirement leave is only available to staff leaving our University to retire where, as members of an occupational pension scheme, staff have eligibility for immediate access to their pension benefits.  The retirement leave of two days leave per month (pro rata for part-time staff) is available for staff who formally notify our University of their retirement from paid employment.  This retirement leave is to enable individuals to plan for retirement and must be taken on a month by month basis. There is no provision to carry this forward from one month to the next or to treat this as ‘annual leave’ for any other purpose.  For further information, please refer to our Retirement Guidelines

In the event of adverse weather conditions, staff are expected to make every effort to attend and should not assume that early morning travel disruptions will prevail throughout the day.

Staff who are unable to attend for work at their normal starting time should notify their manager as soon as possible, at least half an hour prior to normal starting time.

It is recognised that in exceptional circumstances, due to continued bad weather and transport difficulties or as a result of school closures, staff may be unable to get to work. In these circumstances the absence should be taken as annual leave or where appropriate as flexi time.  For further information, please refer to our Adverse Weather Conditions Guidelines.