1. Family Friendly Policies
Rose Cooze – HR Officer
Telephone:

2. Family Friendly policies
• Flexible Working
• Maternity Leave
• Paternity Leave
• Adoption Leave
• Time Off for Care of Dependants
• Parental Leave
• Child Care Voucher Scheme   
Care of Dependents includes:
Chronically ill
Compassionate leave

3. Flexible Working Policy
Objective – To achieve a better balance between work and family commitments.

4. Types of Flexible Working
Part Time / Reduced hours
Variable Working hours
Term Time only
Job Share
Working from Home
The list is not exhaustive
The list is not exhaustive – requests are considered on an individual basis. When making a request, it is important to be well prepared, and to think about the request from all perspectives.
Points to consider:
Employer/employee benefits
How the new pattern will work?
If you were the line manager, what would you want to know?
How will this impact on the team, etc.?
Compromise, where the full request may not be possible
Trial period – e.g. 3 months with a review meeting scheduled

5. Employer Benefits
Increasing customer satisfaction as their needs are met around the clock
Better staff motivation – flexibility encourages workers to feel more in control of their life and therefore happier
Falling absenteeism and sickness
Increased productivity
Greater wellbeing among staff
Increased ability to recruit and retain skilled employees

6. Employee Benefits Greater autonomy over the way in which you work
Career progression and development
The ability to balance work and home life
The feeling of being valued and trusted to do a good job
Increased motivation and creativity

7. The procedure
Application submitted to Head of College Indentifying how it will impact on the role Meeting within 28 days Written decision with 14 days Right to appeal
The law changed in April 2014 to be extended to all employees with six months service – previously children under 16 or 18 if disabled
Application be submitted in writing (which includes ) to the Head of College using form L6028
specify the change requested and the date from which they would like the changes to be effective•
explain the effects of the proposed changes on the College, the job and other colleagues
Meeting – Trade Union/colleague and HR if required
Decision – Agree – permanent basis or may trial period
Refuse:a) Additional costs to the College b) Detrimental effect on the ability to meet customer demand c) Inability to reorganise the work among existing staff d) Inability to recruit additional staff e) Detrimental impact on quality f) Detrimental impact on the performance of the College g) Insufficiency of work at the proposed times of work h) Planned structural changes within the College
Appeal PVC within 14 days of decision. Meeting within 14 days. Notification 14 days

8. Trial Period
We would usually recommend a trial period Trial period between 3 – 6 months Early discussions are advisable

9. Term Time working
1) School Term times 40 weeks per year FTE 2) University Term times 32 weeks per year FTE

10. Maternity Leave
All female staff who are expecting a baby have the right to Maternity Leave This period counts as continuous service. Staff entitled to take up to 52 weeks’ maternity leave KIT Days – 10 Keeping in Touch days Annual leave unaffected Pension contributions continue (expect for any unpaid period) Maternity Risk Assessment undertaken by Occupational Health Nurse Reasonable time –off granted for anti-natal appointments
All female staff who are expecting a baby have the right to cease work before the expected birth of their child and the right to return to work after the birth.
Annual leave unaffected (still continue to accrue annual leave)

11. Occupational Maternity Pay and SMP
You will be eligible for the Swansea University Maternity Scheme if you have 52 weeks continuous service for Swansea University by the date your baby is due You would receive: 8 weeks full pay 18 weeks at half pay, plus SMP at the lower rate of £ weeks at SMP only (£ per week) Up to 13 weeks unpaid leave

12. Paternity Leave
Paternity leave can be for up to two weeks, but can only be taken in one block of either one week or two weeks. The start date for Statutory Paternity leave is flexible and does not need to be from a Sunday. Paternity leave cannot start before the actual date of childbirth and can only be taken during the 56 days after the actual date of birth or, if the child is born early, up to 56 days after the expected date of childbirth.

13. Statutory Paternity Pay
The University Paternity Leave scheme provides full pay for employees for the first week of Paternity leave but for the second week SPP only will be received (£138.10). To qualify, the employee must have been continuously employed by Swansea University for not less than 26 weeks by the 15th week before the Expected Week of Childbirth, (the ‘qualifying week’) and must continue to be employed from the qualifying week up until the baby’s birth.

14. Adoption Leave
Adoption leave and pay are available to employees who adopt as individuals or to one member of a couple where the couple adopt jointly. The leave and pay are as outlined in the maternity scheme. The partner of an individual who adopts, or the other member of a couple adopting jointly, will be eligible for paternity leave and pay in accordance with the scheme set out in the previous section.

15. Time off for Care of Dependents - Unpaid
Employees will be entitled to unpaid time off to deal with the following situations:
a dependant falls ill, is injured or assaulted;
childcare or other care arrangements break down;
a child is involved in a serious incident at school or during school hours
any other emergency situation which arises at short notice over which the employee has no control.
1 to 2 days should be sufficient and in any event not more than 3 days unpaid leave will be granted
employees should notify their Line Manager of the reason for their absence and, its likely duration.
Dependent falls ill – or gives birth (note Paternity Policy though)
Childcare - if the childminder or nurse does not turn up;
School - if the child has been involved in a fight or is distressed.
Requests for time off of 1 day or more should be made in writing to the Line Manager/Head of Department/College who may approve the time off subject to consultation with the HR Department.
Staff may prefer to take annual leave etc in the first instance

16. CARE OF CHRONICALLY ILL DEPENDANTS
Sympathetic consideration will be given to granting unpaid time off to care for chronically ill dependants. The maximum time off will depend on the circumstances, but will not normally be more than three months. Applications should be made in writing to the HR Department.

17. COMPASSIONATE LEAVE
Paid time off is available for Compassionate Leave. Up to 5 days' paid leave on the death of a dependant, or another for whom the employee is responsible for making funeral arrangements. For the death of a close friend or relative who is not a dependant time off is granted to attend the funeral

18. Term Time working
1) School Term times 40 weeks per year FTE 2) University Term times 32 weeks per year FTE

19. Parental Leave
Up to 13 weeks unpaid leave per child Multiples of 1 week or individual blocks Up to 4 weeks per year Request sent to HOD/HR giving at least 21 days notice
i) to spend more time with the child in the early years (ii) to accompany a child during a stay in hospital (iii) to settle a child into new child care arrangements.
Employees are eligible for Parental Leave when they have caring responsibilities for a child up to the age of 6*, or a disabled child up to the age of 18 years.
up to 13 unpaid leave (18 weeks unpaid leave for a child with a disability)
In the case of multiple births each parent will be entitled to 13 weeks unpaid leave for each child

20. Childcare Voucher Scheme
The University has partnered with Computershare to provide the
Childcare Voucher Scheme for the benefit of staff.
Salary sacrifice scheme
Childcare Vouchers:
Are easy to apply for;
Can be used for a range of childcare providers and;
Can save you up to £900 a year, depending on your tax band.
Salary sacrifice – voucher amount is deducted before tax and national insurance – saving up to £900 per year (more info on next slide).
The voucher amount is deducted from your pay, sent to the Kidsunlimited online account, then (depending on the type of account you select) is either sent to the childcare provider on a specific date or you can log in to make the payment yourself.
You can choose how much control over the account you wish to have, i.e. for weekly childcare payments and it is easy to make amendments (e.g. increase over summer holidays)

21. What could you save?
Standard rate tax payers (salary less than £41,450) can sacrifice up to £243 per month = annual savings of up to £900 Higher rate tax payers (salary between £41,451 - £159, 205) can sacrifice up to £124 per month = annual savings of up to £623
Under HMRC regulations, the salary sacrifice amount depends on your tax band.
Standard rate tax payers (salary less than £41,450) can sacrifice up to £243 per month = annual savings of up to £900
Higher rate tax payers (salary between £41,451 - £159, 205) can sacrifice up to £124 per month = annual savings of up to £623
Additional rate tax payers (salary more than £159, 206) can sacrifice up to £97 per month = annual savings of up to £606

22. Eligibility
Any member of staff, who pays for their childcare can apply Earnings above minimum wage The child must be born at the time of application to the scheme Childcare costs from birth to 15 years old (or 16 if the child has a disability)
An employee who pays for childcare, can opt to join the scheme and have up to £243 deducted from your pay each month.
Employees must be earning above minimum wage to qualify and the child must be born at the time of application.
Children from 0 – 15 (or 16 if the child is disabled), for a wide range of childcare providers; nurseries, before and after school clubs, summer clubs, childminders, nannies, etc.
The provider must be registered with Kidsunlimited to receive vouchers, but if your provider is not currently registered, it is easy for them to join by completing an online form or over the phone.
More info

23. More information + To apply
For more information please go to the University website (staff):
Please send any queries to a member of the Equal Opportunities team on x3687 or x2367 or via to:
Contact details and more information about the scheme.
Employees can apply over the phone or via the online application form.

24. Any Questions ?