Consider time for training

Introduction

The right to request time to train applies across Great Britain to employees in all organisations with at least 250 employees. This right will be extended to cover employees in all businesses from 6 April 2011.

Employees' requests can be to undertake accredited programmes leading to a qualification, or for unaccredited training to help them develop specific skills relevant to their job, workplace or business. While employee requests may involve agreeing time away from their duties, the primary focus of the new right is about agreeing relevant training with your staff.

As an employer, you are required to consider any requests and respond within a set timeframe. You can turn down requests when you have a good business reason to do so, including where you do not believe the training will help improve business performance. The new right closely follows the model used for agreeing requests under the flexible working arrangements.

This guide is designed to help employers, human resources managers and others with responsibility for dealing with requests to understand their responsibilities under the new right, and the responsibilities of your employees.

This is only applicable to England, Scotland and Wales. The information is not relevant to businesses in Northern Ireland.

Subjects covered in this guide

• Introduction
• Employee eligibility criteria for time to train
• Training employees can request as part of time to train
• Information employees must include in a time to train request
• Invalid time to train requests and request withdrawals
• Timescales for considering time to train requests
• Considering whether to accept or reject a time to train request
• Communicating decisions on time to train requests
• Internal appeals process for time to train requests
• Dealing with unresolved time to train requests
• Employment protection and time to train requests

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