Disability Support at Work

Internal Process for an Access to Work Application:

1. Employee informs their line manager of their difficulties/potential difficulties in the workplace. This is often undertaken during a return to work interview with their line manager following a period of sickness absence, during an appraisal or where the employee has already used the access to work process and needs a review.

2. Where a workplace assessment is necessary the line manager through discussion with the employee will arrange for a risk assessment to be undertaken by a competent risk assessor for that department/ward and advice can be sought from the risk management department.  Following this risk assessment the risk assessor will make recommendations of reasonable adjustments that may be made locally (e.g. through estates) and / or may recommend the individual to contact the access to work scheme.

3. The employee should contact “Access to Work” based in Glasgow on telephone: 0141 950 5327 and will complete an application form (AtW1) appendix 1 over the phone.  This will be followed up by confirmation to the employee of eligibility and a request for confirmation of the details contained in the AtW1 form.

4. An assessment date is arranged and the employee must inform their line manager of this date.

5. Where IT software and/or hardware will need to be ordered it is essential that the Line Manager contacts Marian Boardman (IT Site Manager) for her to be present at the assessment. This is to ensure that the recommendation by the assessor is compatible with the Alder Hey technical infrastructure, standards and guidelines. Failure to do this may result in lengthy delays over compatibility and funding issues with access to work and specialist suppliers.

6. Where changes to premises may be required then the line manager should contact Dave Roberts (Estates) for him to be present at the assessment to liaise with the assessor.

7. The access to work assessor will normally ask the employee if they wish for a copy of the report with the recommendations to be sent to the line manager and the employee normally agrees to this. The line manager must ensure that the assessor has the correct contact address for the line manager. 

8. On receipt of the recommendations the line manager with the consent of the employee must also send a copy to Hannah Ainsworth (Equality and Diversity) for data monitoring purposes and to Gillian Downes (Occupational Health Manager).

9. When the report is received an “application for reimbursement of one off costs” form appendix 2 will also be attached. See point 15. 

10. The report may make recommendations of suppliers and equipment. Where there are recommendations if the Trust can obtain cheaper alternatives then providing this is agreed as an acceptable alternative with the access to work representative then the alternative can be ordered.  Advice should be sought by the line manager for cheaper alternatives if chairs (risk management), IM&T hardware (IM&T support) or procurement (preferred suppliers).

11. Where the report requires equipment to be ordered the line manager is ultimately responsible for ensuring that the equipment is received by their staff in a timely manner. The line manager should ensure that no later than 1 week of receiving the report that:

            √ The requisition in raised on TECH 1

            √ All recommended items are ordered through procurement stipulating in the “Comments Box” that it is a “Priority Access to Work Order”.

            √ Please note that all access to work applications do not require a second signatory as equipment is part funded by Access to Work.

12. The immediate line manager of the employee is responsible for monitoring progress ensuring the employee is kept informed at all times as to where their application is up to and ensuring that all the items ordered are delivered in a timely manner addressing any glitches that could cause delay in this process. Communication with the relevant employee is essential to ensure that expectations can be reasonably managed and to avoid frustration resulting from unavoidable delays.

13. If the recommendations include IT hardware and/or IT software the line manager should provide a copy of the recommendations to Marian Boardman or the relevant IT assessor present as in 5 to arrange for it to be ordered by the IM&T department providing the cost centre number and approval to raise the requisition.

14. The line manager should ensure that the employee will receive all items ordered within 1 month of order subject to the time taken by suppliers. 

15. Once the goods have been delivered the line manager and employee will need to complete:

            √  “Application for reimbursement for one off costs form” (claim                              form) attaching the original suppliers invoice. 

            √  When the employee receives all the equipment they will also need to complete and return a “Date of support received form” and return this to access to work.

It is essential that the line manager ensures that both forms are completed and sent to Melissa Bridge in Finance. The Trust will not be reimbursed until these forms are received by the access to work scheme.

New Starters:

1. Where a successful applicant discloses (i.e. on their application form, in interview or occupational health pre-employment check) that they have a disability and / or may need reasonable adjustments to their workplace on starting their employment with the Trust then on acceptance of offer the line manager needs to either arrange for a local risk assessment to take place and / or advise the new appointee (subject to point 2) to contact access to work so that any reasonable adjustments required can be put in place at the earliest opportunity and if necessary prior to their start date.

2. The line manager will need to ask the new appointee if in their current workplace they have already been supplied with any equipment etc from the access to work scheme and if so if they would be able to bring this equipment with them (see notes on leavers also).  Where this is applicable the finance department will be contacted by the Access to Work Scheme on behalf of their previous employer requesting a payment towards the cost of the equipment.

3. Where a new access to work assessment is required, in order for the Trust to be re-imbursed 100% from access to work an application by telephone call to access to work at the Glasgow office must be made at the latest within 6 weeks of the individual’s start date.

4. The length of time it takes for reasonable adjustments to be put in place can vary depending on what recommendations are made and the time taken to follow the Access to Work process. 

5. Once the line manager and new appointee are in receipt of the access to work recommendations a discussion will need to take place between the line manager, new appointee, recruitment team, risk management and if necessary occupational health as the recommendations may or may not influence the start date of the new appointee. The local access to work centre can also advise on whether any temporary arrangements could be put in place by them.

6. The line manager must send a copy of the recommendations to Hannah Ainsworth (Equality and Diversity) for data monitoring purposes and to Gillian Downes (Occupational Health Manager).

Leavers:

1. Where reasonable adjustments has been funded 100% by access to work (i.e. where reasonable adjustments have been put in place within 6 weeks of the individual starting at the Trust) then the employee is entitled to take the equipment with them should they wish to do so unless IT software / hardware (see point 4).

2. Where reasonable adjustments have been part funded by the access to work scheme and part funded by the Trust then the Trust needs to decide if it is financially and practically feasible for the employee to take the equipment with them to their new place of employment should they request to do so.  The decision will also depend on if the equipment can be kept and/or adjusted (which may require an assessment by the access to work scheme) for the benefit of other members of staff. The line manager should contact Access to Work to discuss this.

3. If the Trust permits the leaver to take the equipment with them then Access to Work will on behalf of the Trust contact the new employer to request a suitable payment. The line manager should contact the new employer to arrange this.