Staffing Authorisation Form

Additional Post / Replacement Post
Increase in hours / Extension of Contract
Other:
Job Title:
Fac/Service: / Section / Department:
Building: / Team / Academic Subject:
Status:
/ Permanent / Fixed-Term / All Year Round / Academic Year only / Term-time only
FTE: / Hours per week: / Weeks per year:
Duration / From: / To: / Months:
Name of Previous or Current Post Holder (if applicable):
Does the role require a criminal records check? / Yes / No
Grade: / Annualised Pay?(average pay for term-time staff) / Yes / No
SalaryRange / From: / £ / To: / £
Cost Centre (can be split up to 12 ways – please continue on another sheet) / HESA Cost Centre
0 / 1 / % split: / % split:
0 / 1 / % split: / % split:
0 / 1 / % split: / % split:
External funding source(s):
Contact name for information: / Tel:
Please complete the justification overleaf and attach additional information as relevant, including the Role Profile and/or draft advert text. Your HR Manager can offer advice and assistance in completing and actioning this form. Payscales and guidance are available from HR:
I endorse this staffing application and the attached justification.
Dean/Director or Nominated Deputy: / Date:
University Executive Authorised Declined More information required
University Executive Comments:
University Executive Signature 1: Date:
University Executive Signature 2: Date:
NB: Once authorised/declined, this request may be returned to HR

Staffing Authorisation Form

The University, like most HEIs, is facing challenging times. We need to continuously review our costs and identify opportunities to increase our income to ensure our short and long term financial stability. Our workforce is our most important and valuable asset, with staff costs making up over 53 % of our total expenditure.

It is essential that the University continues to work hard at performing the ‘right’ activities in order to optimise efficiency and effectiveness. We must decrease those activities that are not ‘valued added’, however well they are performed. It is important that managers give full consideration when faced with the potential to maintain or increase the University’s existing staffing costs.

What alternatives have been considered to this role / extension?

In accordance with the University’s Recruitment and Selection Procedure, suitable alternatives to recruitment should be considered prior to the submission of a Staffing Authorisation Request. Human Resources can provide detailed advice and guidance on a number of possible options, including:

  • An external resource such as a contractor, or temporary (agency) staff for short-term assignments.
  • Alternatives to staffing such as changes or improvement in business process(s) (e.g. use of technology, automation, streamlining) which may impact on the requirement to carry out whole or part of the role.)
  • Removing, reallocating, changing or reorganising the work, for example restructuring within the team or department. It is important to consider necessary changes to the working routine/activity/service and the impact on existing staff. For example, increasing an existing employee’s responsibilities on a permanent or fixed term basis, leading to a regrading or honoraria payment.
  • Where the activities are already carried out within the Faculty or Service or wider University, has consideration been given to the ‘sharing’ of staffing resources to utilise key and specialist skills, avoid duplication of effort and empower individuals to identify more efficient and effective ways of performing their duties.

What consideration has been given to minimising budget implications?

Is this staffing cost included in your existing or forthcoming annual budget? If approved, how could the Faculty or Service minimise the cost? For example, the appointment of a new employee at the entry point of the grade. Consideration should also be given as to how you intend to ‘manage’ existing staffing costs into the budget year.

Could the role be carried out fixed term; there are various ‘legitimate’ reasons why a role may be suitable for fixed term employment. These include ‘seasonal’ staff taken on for six months during a peak period; a specialist employee taken on for the duration of a project or someone employed to cover maternity leave.

Some University services and activities can be operated on a more flexible basis, to address peaks and troughs in workload. Could the activities be carried out on a more flexible basis, such as a part-time or term time only?

What would be the business impact of filling this role / not filling this role?

It is important to identify whether the activities that the role performs are ‘essential’ to delivering against University, Faculty or Service objectives. If these activities are deemed to be ‘essential’, has consideration been given to whether existing resources could be diverted from other activities within the Service or Faculty?

It is important to consider the impact of the staffing request on the Faculty, Service and University. This would include any possible risks to the service provision and how serious the impact would be if the risk occurred.

What would the impact on the service be, in terms of quality, volume and provision of service, if the staffing request was approved? What would the impact on the service be, in terms of quality, volume and provision of service, if the staffing request was not approved? What would the impact be on the workload of existing staff, if the staffing request was not approved?

Recruitment Options (where there is no current role-holder):

Could the role be subjected to a planned ‘delayed start’ of 3 or 6 months? Consideration should be given as to how the activities might be carried out during the period of recruitment and/or a planned further delay. This should include the impact on the existing team. For example, might any increased work volumes lead to additional costs being anticipated through staff overtime, time off in lieu or the use of temporary (agency) staff?

Can the vacancy be filled from within the Faculty/Service or University only. Could the role provide a fixed-term secondment opportunity for an internal member of the Faculty of Service?

Staffing Authorisation Form - Justification

In order to assist the Executive in considering this staffing request, please providespecific examplesof what genuine consideration has been given to avoiding the need for this request, or reducing its FTE or cost. Seeguidance for more details and please consult your HR Manager for advice.

Job Title:
Briefly summarise the role / request:
What alternatives have been considered to this role / extension?
Contractor or temp (agency) staff
Job redesign/process improvement to reduce need for whole or part of role.
Removing, reallocating, restructuring or changing work, including any honoraria for staff cover.
Sharing staff or expertise with other areas within the Faculty/Service or in the wider University.
Other alternative(s)
Please provide further detail below. If none, please explain why.
What consideration has been given to minimising budget implications?
  • Is the cost within budget? What consideration has been given to minimising / managing staffing cost?
  • Options for flexible working e.g. part-time / term-time / fixed-term where legitimately justified.
  • Implications for cover, cost and existing workloads if the role had a ‘delayed start’ of 3 or 6 months?

What would be the business impact of filling this role / not filling this role?
  • To what extent is this role (not the individual) essential to delivering strategic objectives?
  • What would be the impact of not filling the role on University, Faculty or Service Objectives?
  • (Please give specific examples of the impact on strategy / workloads / quality, volume provision of service.)

Recruitment Options (where there is no current role-holder):
  • What alternatives to recruitment have been considered to fill this role?
  • Can the vacancy be filled from within the Faculty or Service only (“ring-fencing”) or University (“internal-only”), through redeployment of existing staff, or as a fixed-term secondment opportunity in the University?
  • Can advertising costs be minimised, e.g. by focusing on web-based media?

Any other significant issues to be taken into account
Additional Informationattached (including role profile and relevant structure chart)

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