Here you'll find a range of coronavirus/Covid-19 related HR and Employment resources; if you have any resources you would like to share with other colleges, please email covid19@aoc.co.uk.
Please note that guidance documents have been provided in good faith, are accurate at the date of issue and may require tailoring to your college's particular circumstances.
Documents are generally saved in date order with the most recent first; however, as Government guidance is normally automatically updated as changes occur, these documents are placed towards the top of each section. Due to the amount of information gathered over this period we have 'archived' some of the older documents - if there's something you're looking for and you can't find it here contact the Employment Team at employment@aoc.co.uk
Employment Helpline:
The helpline, run by Irwin Mitchell LLP, is fully operational and available for members to contact about all employment related issues, including Coronavirus/Covid-19. You can contact them here: AoC Employment Helpine
Government guidance documents
Below are links to the current government guidance impacting our sector:
- Further Education coronavirus operational guidance
- Face coverings in education
- Coronavirus restrictions - what you can and cannot do
- Guidance on shielding and protecting people who are clinically extremely vulnerable from COVID-19
- Govt. guidance - Working safely during coronavirus (COVID-19) - 14 guides - however, see the separate specific FE guidance above
Remember that any queries regarding your workforce can be referred to our employment helpline at aocemployment@irwinmitchell.com
General advice, guidance and comment:
- Irwin Mitchell advice: Self isolation advice for schools and colleges dealing with outbreaks - 10 September 2020
- DfE - What to do if a student is displaying symptoms of coronavirus (COVID-19) - 07 September 2020
- Holidays abroad - employers questions answered - 22 April 2021
- Irwin Mitchell Holidays and Quarantine – school and colleges questions answered - 28 July 2020 - from last year but still useful
- Irwin Mitchell blog: Do you need to include bame and obese workers in your return to work risk assessment? - 04 June 2020
Employment and T&Cs - including pay, annual leave and sickness/SSP related:
- Irwin Mitchell briefing - Holidays abroad - employers questions answered - April 2021
- Irwin Mitchell briefing - employee refusing to wear a mask was fairly dismissed - April 2021
- SSP extended to people in 'support bubbles' - 07 July 2020
- Govt. regulation - The Statutory Sick Pay (Coronavirus) (Suspension of Waiting Days and General Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2020 - 6 July 2020
- ACAS: Disciplinary and grievance procedures during coronavirus
- Irwin Mitchell template coronavirus policy for schools and colleges - updated 06 April 2020
- Irwin Mitchell - template homeworking policy - March 2020 (note: this is a generic homeworking template policy)
Reopening including H&S Risk Assessment related
AoC has developed a section dedicated to college reopening support which can be found here. Contained within this section are example risk assessments, many from other colleges and unions. The document below was developed by the AoC and national representatives from UCU, NEU, Unison, Unite and GMB and provides a checklist for reopening.
- - 13 August 2020
Working from home related
- Irwin Mitchell briefing: The right to disconnect
- HMRC confirmation on coronavirus homeworking tax relief
- HSE dedicated coronavirus web pages.
- HSE protecting home workers
- HSE workstation schecklist
- HSE working with discplay screen equipment (DSE)
Job Retention Scheme/Furloughing related:
The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme has been extended until 30 September 2021 and the level of grant available to employers under the scheme will stay the same until 30 June 2021.
You may need to write to staff again, in which case you can find the template letters on the AoC Employment page (scroll down page to find the letter).
- Govt. guidance - Check if you can claim for your employees' wages through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme
- Govt. guidance - Steps to take before calculating your claim using the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme
- Govt. guidance - Check which employees you can put on furlough to use the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme
- Govt. guidance - Calculate how much you can claim using the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme
- HMRC - Further Treasury Direction re JRS made on 25 June 2020
Safeguarding/DBS/ID check related:
- Irwin Mitchell article on government's new safeguarding rules for schools and colleges - 09 April 2020
- Coronavirus (COVID-19): safeguarding in schools, colleges and other providers - 27 March 2020
- COVID-19: Changes to DBS ID checking guidelines - 24 March 2020
- Home Office - Right to work checks: COVID-19 guidance factsheet - March 2020
Useful websites for covid-related briefings and webinar recordings
- Irwin Mitchell
- This Can Happen is a mental health and wellbeing organisation. They have developed some free wellbeing focussed webinars, and are aiming to produce more: This Can Happen webinars
- MyHRToolkit - webinar recordings
- Acas - general and covid related recordings
Resources - including general advice and health & wellbeing:
- AoC - dedicated Mental Health and Wellbeing pages have a wealth of general but also Coronavirus focussed resources for staff and students and is updated regularly.
- Acas resource pages are regularly updated, and they have published a recording of their recent advisory webinar accessible here: Coronavirus – an advisory webinar for employers
- HMRC new HMRC helpline number is 0800 024 1222 and is open from 8am to 4pm Monday to Friday
- Confederation of British Industry (CBI) - Coronavirus hub
- CIPD Covid-19 resource pages.
- Irwin Mitchell have set up a dedicated coronavirus coronavirus resource page, and they have a dedicated LinkedIn group for employers, a regular blog that you can subscribe to, and a selection of webinars.
- National Cyber Security Centre: Home working: preparing your organisation and staff
- The Mental Health Foundation: Looking after your mental health during the Coronavirus outbreak
- Mind: Coronavirus and your wellbeing
- Young Minds: What to do if you're anxious about coronavirus