Flexible working – formal scheme

When the application form is received from your employee, you should acknowledge its receipt.

A confirmation of receipt form is included within form FWA – statutory flexible working application form, and should be used.

Within 2 weeks of the date on which the application form was received, a meeting must take place between the employee and the Head of Administration and Finance or equivalent, or their nominee (or the specified divisional representative in the case of academic staff) to discuss the request for flexible working. In order to be able to demonstrate that the timetable is being adhered to, it is recommended that the department keep a full written record of this.

As outlined in the summary, the department and employee can agree to extend the timescale of any stage of the process at any point, for example in the case of sickness absence, annual leave, family/caring leave, or unavoidable operational priorities at work – agreed extensions should be confirmed in writing.

The meeting should provide an opportunity for the department and the employee to consider the flexible working arrangement requested by the employee and to discuss how the department might accommodate the arrangement. Alternative possible flexible working arrangements should be explored if it is likely that the department cannot accommodate the flexible working arrangement requested by the employee.

Please note that:

• The time and place of the meeting must be convenient to the departmental representative, and the employee and their representative (where applicable) – the meeting can take place in person, via video call or over the phone.
• You are advised to keep a written record of this meeting.
• The department should prepare for the meeting by considering its operational practices in relation to the flexible working request. A flexible working request can only be rejected because of one or more of the statutory reasons, as set out under step 3 (see the section on refusing requests). The request cannot be declined for other reasons. In these circumstances, the department should have also considered any alternative arrangements that could be proposed to the employee, if their preferred changes are not possible to accommodate.

The department's decision on the employee's request for flexible working must be given to that employee within 1 week of the date of the meeting, unless an extension is agreed. The department's decision must be given in writing, and dated. Use the acceptance or rejection forms for this purpose (form FWB or FWC), provided within the templates section.

1. Agreeing requests

Except where the timescale has been formally extended, an employee should be notified of the outcome of their application within 1 week of the meeting.

There is a pro-forma application acceptance form (form FWB) which should be used. The confirmation must include a description of the new working pattern and state the date when the new working pattern will become effective.

Depending on the nature of the change, a change in working pattern may require a contract amendment to be issued. If you need advice on this, contact your HR Business Partner.

Any changes will need to be made to the PeopleXD HR information system, and Payroll should be notified of any changes to working hours which require a salary adjustment, using the Payroll and Contractual Change form.

2. Trial period

If you are uncertain about the impact that a request for flexible working will have on the department, you may wish to allow the employee to work under the requested flexible working arrangement for a reasonable pre-determined trial period (for example, three months) to ascertain in practice whether the arrangement could be successfully implemented.

A template, FWH - Flexible working application trial period agreement, is available for agreeing a trial period under the templates section of this webpage.

If the proposed working arrangement is having an adverse effect on the department during the trial period, you will be in a better position to demonstrate this to the employee concerned, having trialled the change.

Remember you can always extend the time limit if you wish to accommodate a trial period; a template for agreeing an extension  is available under the templates section of this webpage, FWF – Flexible working application extension to timeline. If you decide to do this, the agreement must:

• be recorded in writing by the department
• be dated
• specify what time limit the extension relates to, and
• specify the date on which the extension is to end.

You should also clearly specify:

• that your agreement to the employee's request for flexible working is subject to the outcome of the trial period
• the length of the trial period (when the period starts and when it ends)
• that the change to the employee's terms and conditions of employment during the trial period is a temporary change only
• the exact nature of the temporary changes to the employee's terms and conditions of employment during the trial period (e.g. a change in working hours), and
• the date on which the employee will revert to their previous terms and conditions of employment if, after the trial period, the department rejects their request for flexible working.

If you decide to reject the request for flexible working following the trial period, you should ensure that you give your employee sufficient time to re-adjust to their previous terms and conditions of employment. For example, the employee should be given sufficient time to make alternative care arrangements or reorganise their other activities, where applicable. In effect this could, by agreement, extend the length of the trial period.

If the department agrees with the employee's request for flexible working following a trial period, you must also specify the flexible working arrangement, any contractual variation that has been agreed to, the date that the arrangement and, where appropriate, the contractual variation will begin.

3. Refusing requests

If the department refuses the employee's request for flexible working either with or without a trial period, you must state the operational grounds for that refusal and provide a sufficient explanation as to why those grounds for refusal apply in relation to the request. Use form FWC– statutory flexible working rejection form – to do this.

The Flexible Working (Amendment) Regulations 2023 specify that an employer can only refuse a request for flexible working on one or more of the statutory grounds listed below:

• the burden of additional costs,
• a detrimental effect on ability to meet customer demand,
• an inability to re-organise work among existing staff,
• an inability to recruit additional staff,
• a detrimental impact on quality,
• a detrimental impact on performance,
• insufficiency of work during the periods the employee proposes to work,
• planned structural changes.

If you do have to refuse the employee's request for flexible working, you should at the same time notify the employee of the appeal procedure. This is included in form FWC.

1. Employee submits appeal (within 2 weeks of rejection)

An employee whose request for flexible working has been refused by the department has the right to appeal against the decision; this should normally be within 2 weeks of being notified of the decision. The employee should complete and submit form FWD, the statutory flexible working appeal form.

The employee's notice of appeal must be given in writing, set out the grounds of their appeal, and be dated.

As with all other stages, an extension to the two week limit can be agreed – for example, in the case of the employee being on sick leave, annual leave, or family/caring leave.

2. The appeal meeting (within 2 weeks of receipt of appeal)

An appeal meeting should take place between the employee and the department to discuss the appeal within 2 weeks of the date on which the appeal was received by the department. Ideally, if the request was originally considered by the Head of Administration and Finance or equivalent, an appeal should be heard by the Head of Department, or their nominee. The time and place of the appeal meeting must be convenient to the Head of Department (or the nominee) and to the employee and their representative (where applicable). The meeting can take place in person, via video call, or over the phone.

You are advised to keep a written record of this meeting.

3. Making a decision (within 1 week of the meeting)

The department's decision on the appeal must be given to the employee within one week of the date of the appeal meeting, unless an extension is agreed; it must be given in writing and dated.

If you uphold the appeal, you must also specify the flexible working arrangement and the contractual variation, and the date from which the arrangement and contractual variation will begin.

If you dismiss the appeal you must set out the grounds for your decision and sufficiently explain why those grounds apply (see step 3, above).

The outcome of the appeal should be notified to the employee within two months of first receiving the flexible working request, unless the employee and the department have agreed to extend the timescale.

The formal flexible working scheme reflects employees’ statutory entitlement under the provisions of the Flexible Working (Amendment) Regulations 2023 to request a permanent contractual change to their hours of work. 

Under the formal scheme, if you are an employee at the University, you have the right from day one of employment to ask for a change to your contractual terms and conditions of employment to work flexibly, as long as:

• You are an employee (not an agency or casual worker)
• You have not made more than one statutory application in the previous 12 months (two requests can be made within any 12 month period).

However, you may discuss flexible working informally with your line manager at any point, and agreements about either permanent or temporary changes to hours of work may be reached informally without the need for a formal process. Depending on the nature of the change, an informal agreement may still require a contract amendment. See the informal flexible working guidance for further information.

In the first instance, you are encouraged to explore the informal flexible working scheme with your manager and, where possible, reach an agreement informally, as this does not require a formal process – although it may still require an amendment to your contract. If you have not been able to reach an informal agreement for a flexible working arrangement, then you can apply using the formal statutory scheme by completing form FWA – the statutory flexible working application form, which can be found under the templates section of these webpages.

Your application should be submitted to your Head of Administration and Finance or equivalent. You are also encouraged to copy your manager, and your local HR contact into this email, so that they are aware of your application.

You can make a formal, statutory flexible working application twice in any 12 month period. You cannot make a second request while the first is still active (being considered or appealed).

An informal request, using the informal flexible working scheme, can be made at any time. See the informal flexible working guidance for further information.

If your application for flexible working involves a reduction in hours and you hold a certificate of sponsorship, advice should be sought from the Staff Immigration Team before proceeding with any changes. A reduction in hours, and therefore salary, would be reportable to the Home Office, and this may mean that you no longer meet the conditions of your visa, if your salary drops below the threshold required by the Home Office for sponsorship.

It is not necessary to make requests through the formal scheme: many flexible working requests are agreed informally.

A new working pattern will normally result in a permanent change to your contract of employment, unless otherwise agreed. So think carefully about your request, as you will have no right to revert to your former hours of work once the new pattern has been put in place.  If you are not certain whether you want to make a permanent change, speak to your manager or local HR team about whether a temporary informal flexible working arrangement is possible. Think about the date when you would like your new working pattern to begin. Be aware that the decision-making process can take up to two months to complete.

The more notice you are able to give your department, the more likely it will be possible to implement a change when it suits you. So, once you have completed your application form, you should submit it to your Head of Administration and Finance or equivalent as soon as possible (avoid periods where no one will be available to receive your request, such as fixed closure periods).

Remember that if you request a flexible working pattern that will result in you working fewer hours, your pay, pension contributions and benefits will also be reduced on a pro rata basis. You may wish to take advice from the pensions office about the effect of changes to your pension. If you have a certificate of sponsorship you should ask your department to liaise with the Staff Immigration Team for advice on whether any proposed changes would impact your visa.

Try to provide as much detail as possible about the pattern you would like to work. Bear in mind that it may not be possible to agree the working pattern you are requesting, and it would be helpful to consider any alternative options which you could put forward and which might be acceptable to you if your preferred option is not possible. 

You are not required to address how your proposed changes might impact on the work of your team, department, or service. But bear in mind that your department is entitled to reject your application if they consider that it will have negative operational impacts (see the question ‘What are the grounds on which my application can be refused, and what happens if my application is rejected?’ below for details of the reasons why an application may be rejected).  It might therefore be helpful to consider the impacts of the changes you are requesting and raise any suggestions you may have about how any negative impact might be mitigated when you meet with your department to consider the application.

If you have any colleagues or friends who are already working flexibly, you could ask them about their experiences.

If you are going on maternity, adoption or extended shared parental leave, you should also think carefully about when to make your request. You are encouraged to mention to your department before you take family leave if you wish to apply to work flexibly on your return. Bear in mind that you may need to attend meetings with your department so that your request can be properly considered. If you want the changes to start on your return from maternity leave you should make your application in good time.

You have the right to be accompanied by a trade union representative (if you are a member) or a friend or colleague from within the University. You may wish to consider before you submit your application whether you would like someone to accompany you, and find out their availability for attending a meeting. If they are not available to attend at the proposed date and time, you have the right to ask to rearrange the meeting time; the new meeting time should be convenient to all parties. This may mean that you need to agree to an extension to the timeline of processing your request, if rearranging the meeting will delay this.

The meeting provides a good way for both you and your department to understand each other's position and to try to identify a solution which suits you both. You will be able to discuss the proposed working pattern in depth and consider how it might be accommodated. You should be prepared to be flexible because if the original working pattern cannot be accommodated, the meeting will also provide an opportunity to see if an alternative working arrangement may be appropriate. Trying a new working pattern for an agreed trial period in order to see how it would suit you and your department might also be an option.

To ensure you get the most from the meeting you should:

• be prepared to expand on any points in your application
• prepare to be flexible. Your department may ask if there are any other working patterns you would be willing to consider or if you would consider another start date or a trial period
• make sure, if you are taking a trade union representative or a friend or colleague along, that they are fully briefed on your request before the meeting, provide them with a copy of your application and this guidance, and inform your department that you are bringing your representative. This will save time during the meeting
• make sure you and any representative have read this guidance before the meeting so that you are familiar with the University's procedures on requesting flexible working and understand what the next steps will be.

An application can be refused only where there is a clear operational reason to do so. The operational reason(s) for refusing an application must be at least one of the following:

• the burden of additional costs
• an inability to re-organise work among existing staff
• an inability to recruit additional staff
• a detrimental impact on quality
• a detrimental impact on performance
• a detrimental effect on ability to meet customer demand
• insufficient work available during the periods the employee proposes to work
• planned structural changes

These are the statutory reasons why your department could refuse your request for a change in your working pattern or location. If your application is refused, your department will write to you to explain exactly why the requested working pattern cannot be accepted, and will explain this in the context of your case.

You have the right to appeal this decision if you disagree with it, and this right will be communicated to you in the form. If you would like to submit an appeal, you should do this within 2 weeks (but can request an extension to this timeline). Use form FWD – statutory flexible working appeal form to write your appeal..

Your department will arrange for your appeal to be heard by the Head of Department (or their nominee). You will be informed of the outcome within one week of this meeting taking place.

You are also entitled to submit another formal flexible working request in the future, as long as you have not already submitted more than one application within the previous 12 months (two requests are permitted within any 12 month period).