Contracts and terms and conditions of employment
- Conditions of service for school support staff Understand who's responsible for setting the conditions of service for school support staff in different types of schools and how pay arrangements are determined.
- Conditions of service for teachers: the STPCD and the Burgundy Book Find out whether the School Teachers' Pay and Conditions Document (STPCD) and Burgundy Book apply in your school and get an overview of the key requirements they cover.
- Continuous service Find a definition of continuous service, and whether it applies to a staff member who is moving between a maintained school and academy.
- How to handle flexible working requests Find out how to confidently respond to any flexible working requests you receive. Download our request form to give to your staff, and learn what to do when you receive a request, and the reasonable grounds for refusal.
- How to make changes to an employment contract Be clear on what you need to do to change an employment contract, like consulting staff members and putting the agreed changes into writing. Get tips on what to do if staff don't agree with your proposals, and learn how to minimise the risk of a legal challenge.
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Moving staff between schools in a MAT
Many multi-academy trusts (MATs) get staff to work across schools, or move between schools. Read on for advice on how to manage this - whether it's moving around on a day-to-day basis or moving someone to a new role in another school.
For Trust Leaders
3 articles
Maternity and paternity arrangements
- Keeping in touch (KIT) days Employees on maternity or adoption leave are entitled to 10 keeping in touch (KIT) days. Read guidance on how and when they can be used, as well as how to calculate pay.
- Maternity leave and pay Download our summary of the rules about maternity pay and leave for teachers and support staff. Adapt our 2 template letters, one for employees giving notice of maternity leave to their employer and the other for employers confirming maternity pay and leave details to an employee.
- Paternity leave and pay Eligible employees are entitled to statutory paternity pay and leave. Read government guidance on your responsibilities as an employer, as well as expert advice on fitting paternity leave around school holidays.
8 articles
Organising working time and breaks
- Directed time: what's covered and how to organise and allocate it Understand the rules around directed time and download our directed time calculator to help you organise and allocate the 1,258.5 hours for your staff during the 2021/22 academic year. Also see examples of directed time budgets from schools.
- Introducing additional INSET days Be clear on when you can introduce extra INSET days for teachers, and what you should consider before doing so.
- Lunch and breaktime supervision: staff availability and ratios Teachers employed under the STPCD as a rule can't supervise lunchbreaks, but they can supervise morning and afternoon breaks. Find out about staffing ratios required for break and lunchtimes and what you'll need to assess to keep pupils safe.
- Part-time staff: attending INSET days and meetings Understand the guidance around a part-time staff member attending meetings, including parent evenings, and training events such as INSET days. See the rules for teachers and support staff, and whether you should pro-rata attendance.
- Part-time teachers' working time Find out the rules on working time for part-time teachers and be clear on their employment conditions under the STPCD. Use our template to make a case to change a part-time teacher’s working hours or days.
- Rest breaks for support staff Understand your requirements around allowing support staff rest breaks. Find out what to do about pay if support staff members work through their break.
- Rest breaks for teachers Find out what breaks your teachers are entitled to, how long they should be and the issues to bear in mind, with DfE, ASCL and expert guidance.
- Staff meetings: guidance Make the most of meetings with your whole-staff workforce by carefully considering their purpose. Find out how you can reduce the impact on their workload and understand the rules on the frequency of meetings.
3 articles
PPA time and other non-contact time
- Management time: requirements You must give teachers with leadership responsibilities, such as subject leaders, a 'reasonable' amount of non-contact time. Find out the rules here, and see advice on how much time to give.
- Planning, preparation and assessment (PPA) time Find essential information on planning, preparation and assessment (PPA) time in just 1 page. You can also download a copy of this QuickRead as a ready-made resource to share with colleagues.
- PPA time: rules, eligibility and organisation Under the STPCD, you must provide eligible teachers with guaranteed planning, preparation and assessment (PPA) time. Read the rules on what you must provide, which teachers are eligible and how to manage planning and delivering cover lessons.
9 articles
Staff leave and absence
- Leave entitlements for staff Understand the statutory and additional leave entitlements an employer must provide for teachers and support staff.
- Managing staff sickness absence and attendance Reduce sickness absence among your staff by promoting wellbeing, making sure your policies are clear, and keeping on top of workplace hygiene.
- Return to work interviews: template and guidance Run positive and practical return to work interviews with this downloadable template and advice on how to prepare and what to cover.
- Sick pay entitlements: teachers Learn about sick pay terms for teachers, including who the Burgundy Book terms apply to and what they cover. Also see the latest guidance on pay during the coronavirus pandemic.
- Sick pay for support staff Find out about statutory and occupational sick pay for your support staff, including who's eligible, how much they can get, and how to calculate it.
- Staff leave of absence request forms: examples Find examples of leave request forms from schools to help you write your own.
- Staff medical appointments during school hours Staff are entitled to paid time off for certain medical appointments, but not all. See advice from Acas and ASCL on staff attending medical appointments during the school day.
- Staff sickness absence statistics See the latest national statistics on teacher sickness absence, and learn how you can benchmark your school's sickness absence data with that of other schools.
- Support staff: offering term-time holidays Many schools don’t allow year-round support staff to take annual leave during the term, but we know some school leaders are questioning this approach. Read on to see why you might consider it, and what you’d need to do to make it happen.
