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Services Recruitment Training Consultancy. Looking for Something? Practice Administration firstpracticemanagement. Agenda for Change. In response to these complaints the NHS Staff Council commissioned an independent review of the KSF which confirmed the need to make it easier to use and better integrated with appraisals. The simplified KSF provides a personal development tool for appraisals that is easier to use and gives employers the flexibility to tailor KSF to meet local needs.
It focuses on the six core dimensions that apply to every job, which have been rewritten so they are shorter and easier to understand. Simpler options for developing post outlines have also been introduced and the need to collect evidence has been significantly reduced. Provided the appropriate level of performance and delivery has been achieved during the review period, individuals progress from pay point to pay point on an annual basis.
For pay bands 1 to 7, 8a and 8b this applies to all the pay points in each pay band. However, for pay bands 8c, 8d and 9 this only applies for the first four pay points in the band.
According to updated guidance, pay progression beyond the first four pay points in pay bands 8c, 8d and 9 should be dependent upon the achievement of locally determined levels of performance. Staff should progress through the last two-pay points in these pay bands only when they are assessed as having met the required level of performance. Staff and managers had their own accounts and could manage all the functions of KSF online.
It replaced e-KSF from April The pay system provides benefits for both staff and employers. For employers the system provides greater flexibility to enable them to:. Agenda for Change not only seeks to standardise pay but also terms and conditions. For example, an Agenda for Change contract covers the following areas of employment.
Hours of work — are covered under section 10 of Agenda for Change which introduced standardised arrangements for certain core terms and conditions, including hours, overtime and annual leave.
Part-time employees — under section 11 of Agenda for Change part-time employees should receive the same entitlements on a pro rata basis to full-time colleagues. They should be entitled to paid bank holidays no less than pro rata to the number of bank holidays for a full-time worker, rounded up to the nearest half day. They should suffer no detriment either in terms of pay or pension rights.
Maintaining round the clock services — where staff are required to work to cover services in the evening, at night, over weekends and on general public holidays they should receive unsocial hours payments. Flexible working arrangements — under section 34 of Agenda for Change NHS employers, in partnership with staff organisations, should develop positive flexible working arrangements which allow staff to balance work responsibilities with other aspects of their lives.
Terms and conditions are set out in a service handbook and are subject to regular reviews and occasional changes agreed by the NHS Staff Council. In summary the changes include:. In addition to annual leave entitlement, employees under Agenda for Change are entitled to eight paid general public holidays bank holidays per annum. In the case of all part-time staff this entitlement is pro rata. The Agenda for Change allowance, known as a High Cost Area supplement, is expressed as a percentage of basic pay and is pensionable including the value of any long-term recruitment and retention premium , but subject to a minimum and maximum level of extra pay.
Recruitment and retention premia are additions to the pay of a post, or a group of similar posts, where market pressures would otherwise prevent the employer from being able to recruit or retain staff in sufficient numbers at normal salary for jobs of that weight.
Local NHS employers must make a case for each recruitment and retention premia and make an application. Where it is agreed that a recruitment and retention payment is necessary for a particular group of staff guidance will be given to employers on the appropriate level of payment. The AfC handbook specifies that when using their vehicles in the performance of their duties, employees must ensure they possess a valid driving licence, a Ministry of Transport test MOT certificate and motor insurance which covers business travel.
The employee must inform the employer if there is a change in status. Although implementation of Agenda for Change is compulsory across the NHS, in general practice it is voluntary except for salaried GPs.
The expectation of the Government is that GP practices will ensure their employment standards comply with good human resources practice in line with Agenda for Change principles.
In addition to direct involvement with Agenda for Change, general practice does of course have indirect involvement in that some staff working as part of the primary healthcare team will be on Agenda for Change pay and conditions. This is likely to have an effect on staff such as practice nurses who may work alongside district nurses, for example, on different pay scales, and may influence the practices pay and recruitment strategies.
The RCN guidance recognises that practice staff are employed by independent contractors. However, it also recognises that practice nurses invariably work closely with their colleagues in the NHS and are an essential and integral part of NHS services. Their position is therefore that they should be able to benefit from similar conditions of service as their NHS employed colleagues.
While many GP practices already provide good terms and conditions for their staff, the key advantage of implementing Agenda for Change would be to ensure pay parity with the NHS, and equal pay for work of equal value. This in turn would deliver:. Practices that wish to adopt Agenda for Change and the Knowledge and Skills Framework should establish joint partnership arrangements locally.
This can be done within the practice, with other practices or with commissioning bodiesthe local Primary Care Organisation. National Agenda for Change profiles for practice nurses have been produced in order to support those GP practices who wish to adopt the scheme and the specialist nurse profile will apply to some nurse practitioners.
Previously, the Review Body for Nursing and Other Health Professions remit covered all allied health and healthcare science professions, pharmacists, optometrists, applied psychologists and psychotherapists, as well as clinical support workers and technicians supporting these groups. All staff involved in Job Matching and Job Evaluation should have attended the appropriate Department of Health training course. Upon implementation of Agenda for Change, a range of in-house training sessions should be held to inform staff about the new pay system.
Hum Resour Health. Published online Jun James Buchan 1, 2 and David Evans 3. Author information Article notes Copyright and License information Disclaimer. Corresponding author. James Buchan: ku. Received Nov 25; Accepted Jun This article has been cited by other articles in PMC.
Abstract Background Pay and pay systems are a critical element in any health sector human resource strategy. Methods This study was the first independent assessment of the impact of Agenda for Change at a local and national level. Results Most of the NHS trust managers interviewed were in favour of Agenda for Change, believing it would assist in delivering improvements in patient care and staff experience.
Conclusion Agenda for Change took several years to design, and has only recently been implemented. Background Pay and pay systems are a critical element in any health sector human resource strategy. The case for change in NHS pay By the mids, the NHS pay system, developed nearly 50 years earlier with the creation of the NHS in , was increasingly being seen as outdated and not fit for purpose.
Table 1 The implementation timetable for Agenda for Change. Open in a separate window. Source: Buchan and Evans [ 1 ]. What is Agenda for Change? Table 2 Key elements of Agenda for Change: pay bands April Results This section reports on the findings from the case study hospital trusts in terms of the reported experience so far in implementing Agenda for Change, and from feedback from key national informants.
The rationale for Agenda for Change Most of the NHS trust managers interviewed were in favour of Agenda for Change, believing that, in part at least, it would assist in delivering the improvements in patient care and staff experience that were its stated objectives. Costs Implementing a new pay system inevitably incurs costs — both one-off costs linked to the process of setting up new systems, and ongoing costs if staff are assimilated on to the new structure at a higher level.
Impact Agenda for Change was intended to be a means to an end — to facilitate the development of new roles and new ways of working, and to improve staff recruitment and retention. Implementation benefits Intermediate benefits Long-term benefits Fair pay More teamwork More patients treated Better pay Greater innovation in staff deployment Higher-quality care Partnership working Better career development Equal opportunities and diversity Better recruitment and retention Human resources systems Better morale Simplified administration.
NHS Employers, [ 14 ]. Table 5 Responses of staff in acute trusts in relation to survey questions about Agenda for Change. Discussion The key finding of the case study research at local level was that, while interviewees could point to local examples of benefits realization, there has so far been only limited evaluation of the experience of implementation and of the impact of Agenda for Change.
Conclusion The paper has set out an assessment of progress up to mid with the implementation of the new pay system within a national health system. Competing interests The authors declare that they have no competing interests. Authors' contributions JB Directed the study, contributed to design, methods, fieldwork and report writing, DE contributed to design, methods, fieldwork and report writing.
Acknowledgements The authors wish to acknowledge the support of the Kings Fund, in conducting this study. References Buchan J, Evans D. Realising the Benefits? Implementing Agenda for Change.
Kings Fund, London; London: Department of Health; The Knowledge and Skills Framework. London: NHS Employers; Our Future Health Secured? Kings Fund London; London: The Stationery Office; Public sector wages squeeze looks set to continue to Nursing Standard.
Pay in the Public Services If sickness absence is because of an injury or disease wholly or mainly attributable to your employment, you may be entitled to claim additional benefits. For further information see accidents at work and personal injury. Section 14 explains how sick pay for NHS staff is to be calculated. Please see the section that applies to the country in which you work. The way in which your 'usual' sick pay is calculated will depend on what band you work in and whether the absence is due to work-related injury or disease.
Under section 13, table six of the handbook, you are entitled to the following annual leave:. If you work standard shifts, other than seven and a half hours excluding meal breaks, your annual leave and general public holiday entitlements should be calculated on an hourly basis, to prevent you receiving greater or less leave than colleagues on standard shifts section Part-time workers will be entitled to paid public holidays no less than pro-rata to the number of public holidays for a full-time worker, rounded up to the nearest half day section As a part-time worker, your public holiday entitlement shall be added to your annual leave entitlement, and you should take the public holidays you would normally work as annual leave section Pay during annual leave will include regularly paid supplements, including any recruitment and retention premia, payments for work outside normal hours and high cost area supplements.
Pay is calculated on the basis of what you would have received had you been at work. See section If you believe you have been underpaid, please see our underpayment of wages guide. Please check section 15 of the Agenda for Change handbook note there are different provisions for England and Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and your employer's policy for more detail.
Before the end of the 15th week before the expected date of childbirth or if this is not possible, as soon as is reasonably practicable thereafter you must provide your employer with a MATB1 form. See sections 12 and 15 of the handbook for advice on continuous service. To claim NHS contractual maternity pay you must intend to return to work with the same or another NHS employer for a minimum period of three months after your maternity leave has ended.
You have the right to return to your job, under your original contract with no less favourable terms and conditions.
If you want to return to work on different hours in the same job your employer must facilitate this unless they provide written, objectively justifiable reasons why this is not possible. If you do not return to NHS employment within 15 months of the beginning of your maternity leave, then you will be liable to refund the whole of your maternity pay except for the Statutory Maternity Pay element.
In cases where your employer considers that to enforce this provision would cause undue hardship or distress, they will have the discretion to waive their rights to recovery. If you satisfy the conditions in paragraph This is paid at 90 per cent of your average weekly earnings for the first six weeks of your maternity leave and at a flat rate sum for the following 33 weeks. You can find out more about maternity, work and family here. Section 12 of the handbook states:. Bank workers are generally not regarded as employees and therefore do not build up 'continuity of service' in between specific bank shifts.
This is important as continuity of service affects your entitlement to certain things such as annual leave and contractual sick pay under the NHS terms and conditions of service.
The RCN has tested this issue in the courts, on behalf of members, without success. In the absence of continuous previous service with the NHS, employers have the discretion, under section 12 of the NHS terms and conditions of service handbook , to take in to account 'any period or periods of employment with employers outside the NHS where these are judged to be relevant to NHS employment'.
Whilst this is discretionary and employers may argue that staff who work solely on a bank are not employees, staff might want to argue that this approach goes against the spirit of the clause and they should be entitled to some recognition of the years of service.
Please check any local policy and contract for more information on your position.
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