6. Types of flexible working
6.1 The range of flexible working practices that may be requested and, depending on the circumstances, may be appropriate include:
- part-time or term-time working
- job share
- compressed or annual hours
- staggered hours or flexitime.
Some flexible working arrangements may not be appropriate for certain roles and applications will need to be considered on a case-by-case basis.
6.2 The University operates a non-contractual Hybrid Working Policy, which sets out the informal arrangements for hybrid working across the University. Hybrid working is a type of flexible working that focusses on the location in which work is undertaken, with some work being undertaken on the University’s premises and some in a remote working environment, such as an individual’s home. The Hybrid Working Policy also details the University’s approach to working entirely from a remote working environment within the UK.
6.3 Discussions and agreements in connection with the flexibility of the location of work will be managed under the Hybrid Working Policy, except where requests for flexible working:
6.3.1 cannot be informally agreed under the Hybrid Working Policy or exceed the hybrid working arrangements available under the Hybrid Working Policy;
6.3.2 are for changes other than or in addition to the location of work; or
6.3.3 are for a permanent contractual change.
6.4 This Policy will also apply where the appointment of a staff member working entirely from a remote working environment within the UK continues beyond the 12-month period allowable under the provisions of the Hybrid Working Policy. Staff engaged on this form of temporary arrangement will be expected to apply under the University’s Flexible Working Policy should they wish for it to be considered on a longer-term basis. Additionally, if there is a business case to support a staff member working this way on a permanent basis and this arrangement is mutually agreed, an application should be submitted and managed under this Policy. When considering applications of this nature, the Head of Institution should take into consideration the benefits to both the University and their Institution of staff being physically present in line with the principles of the Hybrid Working Policy.
6.5 The University provides a model flexitime scheme for Institutions to adopt if they are implementing a flexitime system across their Institution. If a Head of Institution wishes to revise the model scheme for implementation in their Institution, then they should liaise with their HR Business Partnering team. The details of the model are provided through the link in section 10.
6.6 Definitions of the different forms of flexible working are included in the Glossary in section 9.