Exclusion Procedure
Version 2
September 2012
Document Control / DateQIG Approval
Board of Governors Approval
Offender Learning - Exclusion Procedure
1. Purpose and scope
Working in secure Offender Learning establishments requires a high level of professional standards and integrity from The Manchester College employees. It is an absolute contractual requirement that all our employees adhere strictly to the Offender Learning establishments' security policies and procedures at all times. The security policies and procedures are put in place to maintain safe custody of offenders but also to maintain your safety and all those who work in and visit these establishments. Failure to meet the high security standards required by the Offender Learning establishments may result in exclusion from the Offender Learning establishment and consequentially an inability for employees to fulfil their contract of employment. The knock on effect of this is that the employee is likely to have their employment terminated unless redeployment is available and is appropriate in the circumstances. A further knock on effect is that the college may lose its contract to deliver learning to offenders at these establishments.
This procedure sets out the requirements of all employees who work in secure Offender Learning establishments on a permanent or temporary basis; the procedures which will
be followed should a breach be identified and the potential outcome should an
exclusion result.
It is therefore important that all employees working in Offender Learning establishments read, understand and follow the relevant Offender Learning establishment's security
policies and procedures and they also read this Exclusion Procedure to enable them to
fully understand the very serious consequences for them personally should they be
found to have committed a breach of security.
2. Pre-employment checks
During the recruitment and selection stages of employment all prospective employees are subject to security checking at the relevant Offender Learning establishment. For several establishments this will include completing a CRB check. No firm offer of employment will be made until security clearance from the Offender Learning establishment has been confirmed and if applicable the necessary CRB check has been carried out. The security clearance requirements are subject to change from time to time by the college's business partners and different levels of check are required dependant on the category of Offender Learning establishment. This may mean that should an offer of employment be made and it is subsequently found that the security clearance for the applicable establishment has not been granted or (if applicable) the required CRB check has not been completed or the information received was incomplete or incorrect (wholly or partially) then the college has the right to withdraw any offer made and/or terminate the employment of the employee without notice or any other payment.
3. Disclosure during employment
It is the responsibility of all employees working in an Offender Learning establishment to declare to their manager at the earliest opportunity any change in their security status, such as a conviction or police caution. Failure to make timely self disclosure of such a change is potentially gross misconduct and may result in dismissal without notice. Employees are advised to discuss any changes with their manager if they are unsure whether it may
result in change of security status or not.
The college and/or Offender Learning establishment reserves the right to undertake further security checks during the course of employment. Failure to consent to security checks
may result in exclusion from the Offender Learning establishment and may result in the employee's subsequent dismissal without notice.
4. Security procedures and requirements
All college employees will receive induction training on commencement of employment
on the security procedures in force at the Offender Learning establishment where they will work. Employees must familiarise themselves with the Offender Learning establishment's procedures and strictly adhere to those procedures at all times. Any potential security incident must be reported to the Offender Learning establishment Security Department through a Security Information Report (SIR). Failure to lodge a SIR in a timely manner will be taken as a security breach and may result in exclusion. As stated throughout this procedure, an exclusion by the Offender Learning establishment is likely to result in the termination of the employee's employment unless redeployment is available and appropriate in the circumstances.
Guidelines on security requirements are provided in the Appendix attached.
5. Exclusion procedure
Where the Offender Learning establishment has identified a breach of security it will be reported to the OLASS Manager, who is responsible for ensuring the appropriate procedure is followed. Support, advice and guidance are available from the college’s HR Department.
5.1 Minor breaches of security
In cases of a minor breach, the Offender Learning establishment may, at their discretion, decide to discuss the incident with the college employee or the OLASS Manager and provide advice on future expectations on conduct.
In such cases the OLASS manager will conduct an investigation into the incident and decide on appropriate action as follows
· provide remedial training on security procedures. This may be completed in conjunction with the Offender Learning establishment security department
· provide the employee with further training and advice as to future conduct – this may take the form of an informal warning under the college's Disciplinary Procedures. This may be accompanied by remedial training if appropriate
· where college procedures have potentially been breached and/or the circumstances dictate this is required, a formal process, a disciplinary hearing may be held, which may result in formal disciplinary action. Please refer to the college's Disciplinary Procedures
5.2 Security breach resulting in exclusion
The college and Prison Service endeavour to work in partnership in instances of security breach. However, it must be noted that the Offender Learning establishment can at its absolute discretion permanently exclude any person from the establishment it deems unsuitable, without providing a detailed reason to the employee or the college.
In most cases a breach of security will result in the college employee being excluded from working at the Offender Learning establishment and the OLASS Manager will be informed that this is the case.
The OLASS Manager will advise the employee, who will be placed on paid suspension
while the matter is investigated. All instances of paid suspension must be approved by
the Offender Learning Assistant Principal.
Normally, within five days of the exclusion, the employee will be invited to an investigation meeting to respond to the allegation(s). Witness statements may be taken from other college or a third party employee as appropriate, to obtain clarification of the events which led to the exclusion.
The OLASS Manager will request information from the Offender Learning establishment about the grounds for the exclusion and any supporting information that can be disclosed to the college. It is important to note that due to the sensitive nature of working with offenders the Offender Learning establishment may decline to disclose information about the incident.
In most cases the initial investigation will be completed within 10 days.
The normal practice is for the employee to be provided with the findings of the investigation either at a meeting or in writing.
In all cases the findings of the investigation will be discussed with the Offender Learning establishment. If it is appropriate the college may request that the exclusion be lifted subject to the recommendation from the college on how further security breaches can be prevented – for example
· remedial training in security procedures
· disciplinary hearing which may result in disciplinary action; and/or
· suggestions from the Offender Learning establishment on how security procedures can be applied in specific circumstances will also be taken into account, for example, no longer being responsible for holding keys
5.2.1 Where the Offender Learning establishment confirms the exclusion is lifted subject to certain actions being out in place
The employee will be invited to a meeting to discuss the outcome and any requirements and/or actions. The OLASS Manager will ensure all requirements are actioned, the paid suspension period will end and the employee will normally be required to return to work with minimum delay. The employee must undertake to comply with all actions required of them. The OLASS manager will monitor that the actions are sustained. In some instances the college may also take disciplinary action against the employee.
Experience has shown us that where an employee is given a second chance, by the lifting of an exclusion, and they fail to comply with the standards expected of them, it is likely that the Offender Learning establishment will at some point permanently exclude the employee.
5.2.2 Where an Offender Learning establishment confirms that the exclusion
is permanent
The employee will be invited to a meeting with a Cluster Manager (or one level of management above the member of staff concerned, whichever is the higher) and HR normally within 10 working days of notification by the Offender
Learning establishment that the exclusion is permanent.
The employee has the right to be accompanied at this meeting by a trade union representative or work colleague. The meeting can be delayed by up to five days to allow time to arrange for a companion to attend. If the employee fails to attend the second rearranged meeting, the meeting will be held in their absence and the outcome will be confirmed in writing to them.
One of the likely outcomes of that meeting is that the employee’s employment will be terminated with notice as s/he is no longer able to carry out their contractual duties at their place of work. The dismissal could be with or without notice depending on the reason(s) for the employee's exclusion. Should the college support the permanent exclusion based on
the evidence of the employee's gross misconduct then dismissal without notice will normally be appropriate. However, where the college concludes that this is not a matter of gross misconduct (or there is insufficient evidence to support that belief) then dismissal with
notice will normally be appropriate.
In order to avoid dismissal, if that is appropriate in the circumstances, redeployment opportunities may be explored - although redeployment opportunities are often limited.
Should a potential redeployment opportunity be identified and it is deemed to be appropriate in the circumstances and it is suitable, steps will normally be taken to investigate this within five working days, and if feasible, implemented as soon as possible. The employee will be advised of the outcome of any investigation either at a meeting or in writing.
Should no suitable redeployment opportunity be identified the employee will be advised
that the decision is their employment be terminated with notice. The normal grounds for doing so is principally that the employment contract is 'frustrated' – in other words the employee cannot comply with their contractual obligation to work when the Offender Learning establishment has excluded them from the workplace. In these cases it is clear the college is unable to continue employing the employee when the employee is unable to work.
The Cluster Manager (or one level of management above the member of staff concerned, whichever is the higher) will review the procedures followed, the grounds
for the recommendation and any mitigation submitted by the employee.
If the Cluster Manager (or one level of management above the member of staff concerned, whichever is the higher) is not satisfied that correct procedures have been followed or there are insufficient grounds to support the decision to terminate employment, s/he will refer it back to the OLASS Manager (or relevant Manager) for further investigation and recommendations.
If the Cluster Manager (or one level of management above the member of staff concerned, whichever is the higher) is satisfied that the correct procedures have been followed and that there is reasonable grounds s/he will authorise termination of employment.
The employee will not normally be required to work his/her notice period where notice has been given.
Where notice is given and it is clear from the facts (i.e. where the employee resides and their skills set) that redeployment may be an option, the employee will normally be provided with a current vacancy list and support to assist the employee in obtaining an alternative role within the college (based in the North West of England). It should be noted that redeployment in another Offender Learning establishment is usually not an option. The reason for this is that permanent exclusion from one Offender Learning establishment more often than not is taken into account at other Offender Learning establishments for security clearance purposes, and may prevent security clearance being granted. In other words, if an employee is permanently excluded from one Offender Learning establishment for serious breach of security rules it is highly likely that another Offender Learning establishment will deem it inappropriate for that employee to be employed at their establishment given that the employee has been found to be a security risk.
If no redeployment is secured by the end of the notice period, employment with the college will terminate.
The employee will receive written confirmation of the termination of their employment.
The employee has the right to appeal the decision to terminate their employment.
To exercise this right their appeal should be made in writing, stating the grounds of the appeal, to the Regional Director (or one level of management above the member of staff concerned, whichever is the higher) within five days of receipt of the
letter confirming termination of employment.
6. Appeals
The appeal hearing will be conducted by a manager more senior than the person who
held the permanent exclusion meeting, accompanied by a member of HR.
All the facts, documents and procedures taken into consideration in terminating the employment will be reviewed and the employee will be given the opportunity to state
the grounds for their appeal and any mitigation.
The employee has the right to be accompanied by a trade union representative or a
work colleague at the appeal hearing.
The outcome of the appeal hearing will be confirmed in writing.
If the appeals officer’s decision is that further information is required before a decision
can be made, the matter will be referred to the Cluster Manager (or relevant Manager)