Time off Work Policy document
TIME OFF WORK
This policy is based on the guidance contained in the LA Personnel Handbook:-
SICKNESS
Staff should report to the Deputy Head Teacher as soon as they know illness will result in loss of time at school. In the morning a phone call should be made between by 7.00 a.m so thatcover can be organised. If the absence is longer than one day the Deputy Head should be informed as soon as possible preferably by 3 p.m., so that appropriate cover can be organised. Staff who are absent for more than one day should indicate when they expect to be able to return to work, or if unable to do this, contact the school on a daily basis by 3 p.m. The Head Teacher will be kept informed of the progress of the illness By the Deputy Head Teacher.
Sickness of more than 5 days will require a Doctors Certificate.
PUBLIC DUTIES
The school will sanction a ‘reasonable’ time off for staff who undertake public duties, e.g. Justice of the Peace. This will be at the discretion of the Head Teacher acting in conjunction with the Governing Body who will consider on an individual basis such factors as the effect of the staff absence on the running of the school, previous absences, etc. The LA will provide the finance for supply cover for staff engaged on public duties.
Jury Service - leave of absence will be granted. Staff should notify the Head Teacher at the earliest opportunity.
Trade Union duties – leave of absence will be granted following the procedures guidance on Peoplenet.
BEREAVEMENT
Compassionate leave may be granted at the discretion of the Head Teacher to members of staff who have suffered the death of a close relative. spouse, partner, parent, guardian, child, brother, sister, grandparent or grandchild. The relationship of the member of staff to the person who has died will form the main criteria for granting leave.
Leave guidelines (shown in detail on Peoplenet), e.g. 1 day paid leave to attend funeral of spouse, partner, parent, guardian, child, brother, sister, grandparent or grandchild.
Other leave entitlement may be granted in keeping with the guidelines.
COMPASSIONATE LEAVE
Serious illness of relative - same conditions apply as for bereavement.
Sickness of dependents - to enable alternative arrangements to be made, leave will be granted at the discretion of the Head Teacher.
Medical appointments - staff should endeavour to make all medical/dental appointments for themselves or dependents outside school hours. Otherwise leave of absence paid/unpaid will be granted at the discretion of the Head Teacher., and authorisation must be gained before the appointment. A leave of absence form must be completed and given to the Deputy Head Teacher as soon as possible for authorisation by the Head.
Other circumstances (e.g. attendance at child’s graduation, visits to university, visits to child’s school) – leave, paid/unpaid will be granted at the discretion of the Head Teacher. and authorisation must be gained before visits etc are made.
MATERNITY SUPPORT LEAVE (Paternity Leave/ adoption leave)
Paternity leave is for the purposes of caring for a child or supporting the child's mother. You may be entitled to paternity leave if you are the partner of a woman who is expecting a child (a partner is a person who lives with the mother in an enduring family relationship, but is not a relative of the mother.) Details of the LA scheme will be made available to staff upon request.
MATERNITY RIGHTS
All staff have a right to 1 year’s maternity leave. Details of the LA scheme will be made available to staff upon request.
OTHER LEAVE
Paid/unpaid leave of absence can be granted at the discretion of the Head Teacher for such reasons as: e.g. moving house, examinations, attending selection interviews. A leave of absence form must be completed and given to the Deputy Head Teacher as soon as possible for authorisation by the Head.
TRAVELLING DIFFICULTIES IN BAD WEATHER
The Head Teacher may authorise staff not to attend school when adverse weather conditions make travelling difficult or dangerous. Such absence must be authorised and will then be deemed as paid leave (see ‘Bad Weather’ policy).
Cover will be met by the school for all contingencies set out above where paid leave is indicated and agreed. This will be subject to the ability to meet such costs within the school’s resource allocation and the Governing Body reserves the right to determine the overall policy and arrangements of this and all other matters regarding time off work by staff.
GENERAL
Teachers who are absent should either make lesson plans available to covering staff or have a folder of teaching materials available for staff to use which compliment the current teaching plans.
The school keeps a detailed record of absences which is reported to the LA on a monthly basis.
Evaluation
This is evaluated each Autumn Term by the Head Teacher and Deputy Head Teacher. It will also be looked at by the Senior Leadership Team and available for staff to view on the main school server.
Signed...... To be Reviewed Spring 2015
Dated......
Reviewed Spring 2014
Parkside School Time off Work Policy 2 26/06/14
School Policy