The following points should be used as a checklist for employers and commissioners prior to agreeing in-service training places.
The employer must confirm the following:
- The applicant meets the entry requirements as specified on the NSHCS website.
- Continued employment of the applicant during the training, still subject to NHS terms and conditions. If the applicant was previously employed at a level higher than the Agenda for Change Band 6 required by the nationally recognised job description, the employer is responsible for considering the issues of pay protection for the duration of the training.
- Awareness of the programme requirements and management of any HR, rota or staffing issues caused by the applicant’s attendance at university and/or their participation in any required rotations.
- That the applicant’s assessor/supervisor(s) attend an approved NSHCS training programme, that they have the capacity and time to undertake the role, and that the department has the facilities needed to deliver all the required learning outcomes. Either from their own resources, or in partnership with others.
- Release of the in-service trainee from clinical service for study and training as appropriate, in order to provide equity with the training experience of the direct entry trainees.
- That internal processes for providing access to training and development opportunities are fair and equitable in accordance with local HR policies.
- That the training forms part of their overall commissioning and workforce plans, and that the applicant is an existing member of the workforce and is not employed solely to undertake the training.
- That if unsuccessful in the admissions process, the applicant will remain in their substantive post or employed according to the terms of agreement made with their employer for this eventuality. If as a trainee they fail to progress successfully and have to leave the training programme early, they will return to their substantive post or employment according to the terms of the agreement made with their employer in accepting the training place.
The employer should establish an agreement with the applicant on these points before the applicant is put forward for the training programme.