RAVENSBOURNE COLLEGE OF DESIGN AND COMMUNICATION

FLEXIBLE WORKING POLICY AND PROCEDURE

1. The Policy

1.1 The following policy and procedure relating to flexible working does not
form part of the terms and conditions of employment.

1.2 The College’s Flexible Working Policy outlines it’s commitment to

consider flexible working arrangements for eligible members of staff
who have caring responsibilities (parents of young, adopted or disabled
children, and to those staff who have caring responsibilities for adult
relatives).

1.3 The College recognises the contribution of all staff and also
understands that at some time in their working lives, they may find it
difficult to fulfil domestic, family and working commitments due to
having caring responsibilities. Where this occurs, the College will
consider practical help through this Flexible Working Policy.

1.4 Flexible working is about considering the way work is organised to see
whether it is possible to agree to different arrangements for any
particular job, whilst ensuring that the College achieves its core
business purpose efficiently. The College will, therefore, wherever
possible, support requests for flexible working and give each request
careful consideration. It should be recognised, however, that flexible
working is not an automatic right and it may not be feasible in a number
of work situations. The smaller the institution, the more difficult it is
likely to be to accommodate some flexible working requests due to
sound business reasons.

2. Trial time period and permanent change to working pattern

2.1 If the College is able to agree flexible working arrangements, then the
employee must understand that it is for a trial period of 6 months with a
review date at this stage. The College therefore reserves the right to
withdraw the flexible arrangement at the end of the 6 month trial period
if it considers it has not worked successfully. Thereafter, it will be
reviewed annually to assess whether business or personal
commitments mean that this arrangement needs to be revisited.

2.2 Staff should be aware that if they request and are granted a change to
their working pattern, this is a variation of their terms and conditions of
employment and is a permanent change, unless otherwise agreed at
the outset. If their circumstances change in relation to the need for
flexible working, there is no statutory right for a return to the terms and
conditions that applied to them prior to flexible working being granted.

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3. Commitment by the College:

3.1 It will consider requests for flexible working by eligible members of staff
who:

• Put in a written request

• Recognise that the initial onus of making an application is with
the member of staff
• The College will follow the correct procedure as outlined in this
document

3.2 The College will reject an application where it is considered that

granting flexible working would be detrimental to its business needs.

3.3 No member of staff will be treated less favourably, suffer detriment, or

be dismissed because they request, or take, flexible working.

4. Types of Flexible Working

4.1 To make it easier to provide care, a member of staff has the right to
make a request to:
• Change the hours they work;
• Change the times when they are required to work; or
• Work partially from home, dependent upon the nature and duties of
the post.

4.2 Requests may range from flexi-time and part-time working partially
from home, job sharing, term-time working and compressed hours.

5. Eligibility

5.1 To be eligible to request flexible working, a member of staff must be an

employee and have worked continuously for a minimum of 26 weeks at
the date of the application for flexible working and must not have made
an application to work flexibly during the previous 12 months.

5.2 The member of staff must also fall under the definition of a carer as set
out by legislation.

5.2.1 Carer for Children: for the right to apply for flexible working, the child
must be under six years of age (or under 18 if disabled). The carer
must be responsible for the child as its parent and be either a biological
parent, guardian, adopter, foster carer or married to or the partner/civil
partner of such a person. The member of staff must also have
responsibility for the upbringing of the child and be making the
application to enable them to care for the child.
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5.2.2 Other carers: the right to apply for flexible working also applies to staff
who are, or expect to be caring for an adult who:

a) is married to, or the partner or civil partner of the member of staff

b) is a near relative of the member of staff, i.e. a parent, parent-in-law,
child over 18, adopted child over 18, sibling, brother or sister-in-law,
son-in-law or daughter-in-law, uncle, aunt or grandparent
c) falls under none of the above categories but lives at the same
address as the member of staff.

5.3 The College will consider all applications for flexible working
regardless of the circumstances, whether it is a legal right or not.

6. Procedure

6.1 When making a request the member of staff needs to:

• submit the application in writing to their line manager, with a copy to

Human Resources
• state that it is an application for flexible working
• state whether a previous application has been made to the College
and, if so, when
• specify the flexible working pattern applied for and the date on
which it is proposed the change should come into effect
• explain what effect, if any, the individual thinks the proposed change
would have on the College and how, in their opinion, any such
effect might be dealt with
• explain how they satisfy the requirements relating to the relationship
with the child or adult being cared for
• state clearly whether the proposed change is permanent or
temporary
• sign and date the application.

6.2 If the line manager feels the request is straightforward and will not
present any problems at all for the smooth running of their
Faculty/Department they should, having raised the matter first with
Human Resources, agree to the request and confirm in writing to the
member of staff that their request has been upheld, and establish a
starting date. Copies of the original request plus the line manager’s
reply should be forwarded to Human Resources for the member of
staff’s file.

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6.3 If the request requires further consideration a meeting should be held,

normally within 28 days after the date on which the application was
made, between the line manager, advised by Human Resources, and
the member of staff who will have the right to be accompanied by a
workplace colleague or Trade Union representative to consider the
request. This will provide an opportunity for the line manager to gather
more information and for the individual to state their case.

6.4 Human Resources will respond in writing to the member of staff

concerned normally within 14 days of the meeting to advise them of the
outcome of the meeting. If the request is accepted, the response will
establish a start date. If the request is refused, the response will
provide business reason(s) for, and an explanation as to why, the
business reason(s) is relevant in the circumstances. It is important to
realise that whilst many requests for Flexible Working can be agreed,
the member of staff cannot insist upon working the exact hours or
working pattern of their choice. The work priorities in certain Faculties
and Departments may vary at peak periods or on certain days/times of
the working week. In such situations it may be possible to reach a
compromise that satisfies both the requirements of the employer and
those of the individual member of staff.

6.5 If a request is refused advice should be sought from Human Resources

to try and reach an acceptable compromise. If this is unsuccessful and
a compromise cannot be reached the member of staff will have the
right to appeal which should be done in writing within 14 days, setting
out the grounds of their appeal. An appeal will be dealt with under
Stage 3 of the College’s Grievance procedure. The hearing will be
heard within 10 working days after receiving the notice of appeal
wherever possible.

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