Annual leave
Booking your leave
All your annual leave should be requested via Staff Connect.
Additional guidance and resources can be found on the Staff Connect support site.
Contact your line manager or head of admin if you experience any difficulty.
Leave entitlement
Professional services and support staff
Your annual leave entitlement is entered into Staff Connect automatically. This includes bank holidays and customary days (Christmas holidays) which you will also need to book if you work part-time.
Academic staff
There are no prescribed hours for academic staff. However, there is a ‘notional’ leave entitlement for academic and research staff to record their leave in Staff Connect, if desired.
Additional annual leave
You can apply to buy extra annual leave - up to a week each year - through our Additional Leave Purchase scheme.
Time off in lieu (TOIL)
Paid time off in lieu on an hour-for-hour basis can be awarded to those who are contractually obliged to work a prescribed number of hours per week.
The decision whether to offer time off in lieu will be made by the responsible supervisor and will be communicated to the member of staff before the work is undertaken.
The taking of TOIL leave must be mutually agreed between the member of staff concerned and the responsible supervisor.
Career break
We recognise that staff may need a period of time away from work, for a variety of reasons.
Our Career Break Policy supports our commitment to work-life balance and also enhances our capability to recruit and retain staff.
Document list
Academic Leave
Research & Innovation or Scholarship & Academic Practice
Find out if you qualify for academic leave and how to apply.
Document list
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Scholarship and Professional Practice Leave Regulations .PDF
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Research & Innovation Leave Regulations .PDF
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Scholarship & Professional Practice Leave Application Form .DOC
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Research & Innovation Leave Application Form .DOC
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Academic Leave Report Form .DOC
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Academic Leave Equal Opportunities Monitoring Form .PDF
Academic staff can apply for leave for a temporary appointment elsewhere, approved work outside the University or study leave funded by an external body.
Document list
Maternity leave
We have developed a policy and procedure to set out the provisions and rights for expectant and new mothers. We have also produced guidance for staff and managers to step you both through the process.
Document list
Paternity leave
We have developed a policy and procedure to set out the provisions and rights for members of staff whose partner is pregnant, or has been notified of a match for adoption and is the secondary adopter.
Document list
Adoption leave
We have developed a policy and procedure to set out the provisions and rights for staff who are newly adopting a child, including the relevant guidance and forms to inform the University of intent to take adoption leave.
Document list
Parental leave
18 weeks' unpaid leave is available for staff who have a child aged under 18.
Document list
Shared parental leave
Shared Parental Leave allows a mother/primary adopter to share part of their maternity/adoption leave and pay with their partner/secondary adopter/child's father.
This allows you both more flexibility in deciding who will care for your child in the first year following the birth/adoption.
We have developed a policy and procedure to explain this type of leave and guidance for you and your manager.
Document list
Leave for public service
We offer special leave for public service, including volunteering, Jury Service and appearing as a witness, and for members of the Territorial Army and Reserve Forces.
Document list
Managing sickness absence
Kent is a caring employer and provides considerable support to all staff in times of sickness and personal difficulties. To do this we need to know if you are unwell, therefore all sickness absence should be recorded in Staff Connect.
Advice on supporting colleagues who are absent due to illness is available for Heads of schools/departments, and those responsible for staff via the HR Employee Relations Team.
Document list
Support for terminal illness
Kent has a long-standing practice of doing its utmost to support staff who are terminally ill.
We all recognise the vital role that work can play in establishing some normality, security and social support when colleagues and their families have to face challenges and difficult decisions during this time.
Special leave
Kent is able to offer special leave covering, for example:
- compassionate reasons
- emergency/domestic situations
- caring for dependants
- medical purposes such as doctor and hospital appointments
- when observing religious holidays