- Prior to applying for a secondment opportunity, a member of staff must first seek the approval to apply from their line manager.
- The manager will need to consider whether they can release the member of staff for the necessary time, dependent upon the needs of the service. If the secondment would unduly disrupt the service, the line manager has a right to refuse.
- Recruiting managers to an internal secondment opportunity should produce a job description, person specification and KSF outline for the role and seek approval for the secondment post via the Recruitment approval process. The recruitment and interview process should be no different to any other form of recruitment.
- It should be noted that there is no change of employment with an external secondment and continuity of employment and existing terms and conditions are retained by the employee.
- If a member of staff is to be seconded internally within the organisation, the manager should ensure written confirmation outlining the Terms and Conditions of the secondment is sent to the member of staff.
- The manager should consider what notice periods should be agreed with the secondment line manager to ensure continuity of service.
- If a member of staff is to be seconded externally, the line manager will need to ensure a Secondment Agreement has been received from the ‘Host Organisation’.
- If a secondee is being seconded into the organisation from an external organisation, the manager should ensure a Secondment Agreement is produced and forwarded for signature to the substantive employer.
- The manager should seek advice from the HR Consultancy Team prior to agreeing any secondment arrangements to ensure that an appropriate contract is issued.
- If any changes are to be made to the member of staff’s Terms and Conditions, i.e. Band, Hours etc, the manager should ensure a payroll change form is completed to action this. ESR Self Service users should also use a change form and not the system.
- The line manager should advise the Finance Team of all secondment agreements, both internally and externally to ensure the correct recharging arrangements are made.
- The manager and member of staff should ensure regular contact is maintained during secondment which should be agreed prior to commencement.
- At the end of a secondment, at least one month prior to the termination of the agreement the member of staff should contact their permanent line manager to discuss the arrangements for return. Although the organisation will make every effort to place the employee back in their original post it may be not possible in all cases for organisational reasons. The employee has the right to return to a post on no less favourable terms than their substantive post. If this occurs, the member of staff will be consulted with at the time of the change in line with the organisation's Managing Organisational Change Policy.
