Policy summary / This policy outlines the high-level principles for attracting, selecting, engaging, deploying and managing Associates
Version Control / V1.0 and 17/09/17Significant Revision
v.1.1 Format revision 19/09/17
Last version dated 11/04/2014
Date implemented / 01/10/17
Owner/contact (approved by) / Anne Parker-Tyler
Head of Delivery Services
Consultation and approval / List who you have consulted and date, for example;
Senior Leaders Group 05/07/17
College Executive18/09/17
Policy Review Phase
Date of next review / Phase 1
01/10/18
Legal Validation / 15/09/17
Equality Impact Assessment / 15/09/17
Approved by ELCA Manager / 19/09/17
Links to other College policies / Information Technology Use Policy
More information available at / Please see section 6 of this document

Associates Policy

Associates Policy

1.Purpose

1.1.Werely on Associates to help design and deliver our services and products. Theyprovide current, relevant and specialist skills and knowledge which complement those of our permanent, contracted and seconded staff. Theyalso provide surge capacity to meet demand. They are engaged for specific, short-term, ad hoc and discrete pieces of work.

1.2.This policy outlines the high-level principles for attracting, selecting, engaging, deploying and managing Associates.

1.3.We will select, engage and manage Associates in a fair and transparent manner, whilst upholding the principles of managing public money and demonstrating efficient and effective use of resources.

1.4.The College is an Arm’s Length Body of the Home Office and its use of Associates is subject to a Home Office delegation[1]. This policy ensures we work within that arrangement.

2.Scope

2.1.This document is intended for use as guidance only and not as a substitute for the College of Policing’s terms and conditions which form part of the purchase order and should be read in full for each individual engagement.In the event of conflict between the two, the terms and conditions shall prevail.

2.2.The College reserves the right to update and amend this policy and its associated documents at any time.

To whom the policy applies

2.3.This Policy applies to the engagement of all Associates who have agreed to offertheir services on a per-day or per-hour basis or by payment of expenses only.

2.4.The work undertaken by Associates is principally the delivery of learning and assessment, this includes the whole learning and development cycle.

2.5.This work is conducted through a contractual arrangement.

Definition of College Associate

2.6.A College Associate, who may be either a Personally Engaged Associate or a Corporate Associate, shall only be engaged by the College to perform specific, discrete tasks (the Associate Projects).

Personally Engaged Associate:

A Personally Engaged Associate is an individual sole trader, who performs any Associate tasks, and who shall not be an employee of the College of Policing Ltd nor classed as Contractor and Contingent Labour (CCL) for internal or Home Office/Cabinet Office purposes.

Corporate Associate:

A Corporate Associate is a corporate entity (including but not limited to limited companies and partnerships) that provides individuals to perform any Associate Tasks on behalf of the legal entity.

What is out of scope?

2.7.This Policy does not apply to contractors, i.e. any resource bought-in bythe College under the general Home Office Contractors and Contingent Labour (CCL)definition.

2.8.This Policy does not apply to anyone engaged through a Collaborative ForceEngagement i.e. police officers, police staff, civil servants or employees of any otherpublic sector body.

2.9.This Policy does not apply to police officers, police staff, civil servants or employees of any other public sector body who are seconded to the College, whether a longerterm secondment or short-term attachment.

  1. How does the policy apply in practice?

Resource pools

3.1.There will be a number of pools of Associates. These will be defined in terms of the business need, skills required and the optimum number of Associates within that pool. It is incumbent on each Business Area to define the requirements for its Associate pools, captured in a scope of work. This includes specifying:

  • the business requirement
  • the number of pools required
  • the optimum size of each pool
  • the criteria required to qualify for joining a pool, i.e. currency, skills, knowledge and qualifications
  • the fee rate and per diem rate as applicable
  • whether IR35 applies and the prime location for delivery of the work for purposes of taxation of expenses (see appendix 4 – Standard Payment & Cancellation Terms for Associates)
  • the vetting level
  • the optimum timeframe for re-selection to a pool and the rationale for this
  • the approach to allocating work
  • A pool cannot have more than the defined number of Associates. If the number drops below the optimum size (through self or College deselection) it will be at the discretion of the Business Area when they seek to re-select for the remaining places but with oversight from the Associates Governance Group.
  • Where there is a business need to increase/decrease the originally defined number of Associates, approval must be sought via the Associates Governance Group.
  • In all instances, the Associate pool should be re-selected every three years, or sooner, to ensure currency and skills are refreshed. Re-selection timescales should be subject to the required skills and experience of the pool and defined as part of the scope of work.

Principles for selecting Associates into pools

3.5.Selection of Associates will be made in line with the nine principles of the Code of Ethics.

3.6.All opportunities to join a pool will be advertised, as a minimum, via the College website.

3.7.Each pool will have a defined scope of work and a clear set of criteria necessary for the delivery of that work e.g. qualifications, skills, knowledge, experience and currency against which potential Associates will be considered. A suitable weighting structure will be allocated to each of the criteria.

3.8.The College will validate qualifications and experience before accepting anyone into a pool.

3.9.Associates are not employees of the College, or seconded to it, nor do they fall within the general Contractors and Contingent Labour (CCL) definition.

3.10.The College cannot engage as Associates, or pay directly, police officers, police staff, civil servants or employees of any other public sector body.

3.11.We will endeavour to provide feedback, if requested, on why an application was unsuccessful.

3.12.It is a Home Office rule that a clear gap of six calendar months is required before anyone in receipt of a redundancy/compensation payment from a force or public sector organisation can be engaged as a College Associate.

3.13.Associates cannot be engaged until after the date of their retirement from a force or public sector organisation. There is no requirement to leave a gap post retirement.

3.14.All potential Associates will need to successfully complete security vetting to the required level prior to being engaged. Associates will be expected to pay for their own vetting with the exception of Examination Invigilators for which the College will pay due to the infrequency of their engagement.

3.15.Police officers or police staff that have retired or otherwise left a force and wishing to become an external Associate must undergo security clearance as their force vetting clearance will have ceased. National security vetting may still be current up to a year after retirement.

3.16.Associates must be capable of satisfying full vetting checks in respect of residency and checkable history (see appendix 6 – Security).

Fee rates

3.17.Fee rates will be defined by the College under the oversight of the Associates Governance Group. This should be a rate that enables the College to obtain the right skills whilst ensuring value-for-money.

3.18.Rates will be reviewed as necessary over time based on demand for, and availability of, Associates.

3.19.Per diems[2] for international work will follow HMRC guidelines and will similarly be agreed by the Associates Governance Group. Per diems will be as consistent as possible but may vary by region or distance travelled.

3.20.See Appendix 4 Standard Payment & Cancellation Terms for further guidance regarding the standard payment arrangements for Associates. The purchase order terms and conditions will always prevail in relation to any engagement.

Standards for Engaging Associates

3.21.There is no obligation on the part of the College to provide any Associate with work, nor to guarantee an amount of work in any time period. However, through fair and transparent allocation we aim to share work equitably among those in the pool. Each pool will have its own allocation criteria.

3.22.The engaging manager will have responsibility for managing performance and outcomes and to confirm that the work has been delivered in accordance with the scope of work to the appropriate quality and timescale.

3.23.Associates are utilised for specific, short-term, ad hoc, discrete pieces of work (typically no more than 50 days per annum and typically less than 20 days for any one assignment).

3.24.Internal breaches of policy may be dealt with through the College’s Code of Conduct.

3.25.There is an expectation that Associates will act in accordance with this policy. Any breaches of policy may result in de-selection.

3.26.Part of the College of Policing values is to promote equality and let everyone have a voice. In helping the College to realise its values and vision Associates will be invited to fill in a very short survey which captures diversity information which enables the college to make informed decisions. By collecting protected characteristics the College is able to develop a deeper understanding of Associates and potential barriers faced. Data will be recorded and processed on our database in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998 and the data protection principles contained therein.

Withdrawal from an Associate Pool

3.27.In the event that an Associate wishes to withdraw from an Associate pool they should notify the College in writing (email acceptable) at the earliest opportunity.

Deselection from an Associate Pool

3.28.The College will specify for each pool the ideal timeframe for re-selection. However, it reserves the right to manage its pools outside of these timescales and may choose to retire a pool for any of the following reasons:

  • Currency of skills and experience
  • Relevance of skills and experience
  • Policy change for usage of Associates.
  • Individual Associates may be deselected from one or more pool for issues relating to performance, or from all pools for issues relating to conduct, ethics or integrity. In these circumstances a panel from within the College will consider the facts and make a decision. The panel’s decision will be final.
  • To ensure its ability to deliver, the College reserves the right to deselect an Associate from one or more pool, and replace them with another, if they are regularly unavailable to carry out engagements.
  • Information on complaints and dispute resolution can be found at appendix 1 – What Associates can expect from the College.

4.Roles and responsibilities

4.1.Role of the Associates Governance Group

  • The detail can be found in the Associate Governance Group’s (AGG) Terms of Reference.
  • Role of the Associates Administration Team
  • Maintain and run the processes and procedures relating to the administration of Associates.
  • Role of Procurement
  • Provide expert advice to the AGG
  • Ensure adherence to the Home Office delegation for use of Associates
  • Provide support to engaging managers, to ensure that selection into the pools is carried out in an open and transparent manner.
  • Ensure correct contractual provisions including Terms and Conditions are utilised.
  • Issue contracts to Associates, processing Purchase Orders with the correct Terms and Conditions referred. Ensuring queries are dealt with or passed on to the most appropriate team to deal with promptly.
  • Role of Finance
  • Facilitateprompt payment of Associates upon receipt of appropriately completed invoices, as set out in ‘Appendix 4 Payment & Cancellation Terms for Associates’.
  • Oversee the compliance with IR35 tax requirements.
  • Role of Engaging Managers
  • Familiarise themselves with this policy and associated processes.

Role of Security

  • Determine the appropriate level of vetting required for resource pools.
  • Determine the appropriate level of vetting required for all associate roles.
  • Be the decision makers for Information Technology provision, taking into account the level of clearance of the Associate, the information to be accessed, the period of engagement and the number of days engaged.
  • Respond to any security breaches and will liaise with the Information Asset Owner and engaging manager to ensure the breach is properly investigated and reported.
  • Respond to any requests for security advice from Associates Administration Team, engaging managers and associates.
  • Role of Customer Services
  • Issue any required IT hardware/software to Associates at the request of engaging managers.
  • Receive the IT hardware/software back via engaging managers at the end of an engagement.
  • Role of Associates
  • Familiarise themselves with, and abide by, both this policy and the formal terms and conditions of their contracted engagement.
  • Conduct themselves in accordance with the College’s code of ethics whilst carrying out work on the College’s behalf.
  • Undertake agreed work for the College to the specification, timescales, budget and quality agreed in the issued Scope of Work/Purchase Order.

5.Powers and Legal Requirements

5.1College staff and Associates, as representatives of the College, all have a legal obligation to comply with the following legislation:

Data Protection Act 1998

Copyrights, Designs and Patents Act 1988

Human Rights Act 1998

Freedom of Information Act 2000

5.2Likewise, we also ensure compliance with:

Authorised Professional Practice on Information Management

Government Security Classification Policy

HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) guidelines

6.Options and Contingencies

6.1 This policy is complimented by, and should be read in conjunction with the AGG’s Terms of Reference and the following appendices.

  • 1. What Associates can expect from the College
  • 2. Expectations of all Associates
  • 3. Conflict of interest
  • 4. Standard payment and cancellation terms for Associates
  • 5. Information Technology
  • 6. Security

7.Monitoring, evaluation and review

7.1.The Chair of the AGG is responsible for monitoring and reviewing this policy. Theymay conduct or appoint another person to undertake a formal review of the policy in response to changes in legislation/codes of practice and, or the efficiency and effectiveness of its application. In order to inform this review the Chair of the AGG will consider:

  • Number of complaints from Associates
  • Employee/management views on clarity of policy
  • Feedback from the AGG
  • Breach of procurement rules
  • Trade Unions’ feedback on policy and process
  • Any necessary changes following any training and engagement activities
  • Policy Equality Statementresults on the decisions taken in accordance with this policy and diversity monitoring
  • All employees are responsible for challenging, without fear of reprisal, otheremployees who have a clear disregard for the contents of this policy.

8.Associated documents

  • Expression of Interest Forms
  • Scope of Work Document (Excel & PDF)
  • Pool Scoring Spreadsheet
  • Terms and Conditions
  • IPR provisions and licensing
  • Allocation policies
  • Code of Ethics
  • Overseas deployment documents
  • Diversity Monitoring form
  • IT SyOps

Ends

Version 1.1Page 1 of 10

[1]The Home Office sets the financial parameters within which we can engage Associates. We are subject also to Home Office procurement policy and procedures and legal and regulatory requirements, including EU Directives.

[2]HMRC has published tables of benchmark scale rates that employers can use to reimburse accommodation and subsistence expenses incurred by employees who have to travel outside the UK.