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Agenda for Change review

Introduction

AfC-Review-Mar24

The Scottish government has agreed to implementation of the Agenda for Change review’s recommendations on reform of the NHS pay scheme.

The scope of the review was set out between the RCN, other health trade unions, professional bodies, NHS Employers and the Scottish Government.

The recommendations from the review relate to:

  • Protected time for statutory, mandatory and profession-specific learning
  • A review of band 5 nursing roles
  • A 30-minute reduction in the working week

Protected time for statutory, mandatory and profession-specific learning

Protected time for learning

From 1 April 2024, you are entitled to protected time for learning.

This means that you will now be given time to complete all mandatory and statutory training, for example, fire safety, moving and handling, prevention and management of violence or aggression and IT/cyber security.  

In addition, and critically important to those of you who are registered nurses, NHS boards will also be required to provide protected learning time for profession specific mandatory training, so that means protected time needs will be made available to support NMC revalidation. 
PDP/appraisal systems will be updated to ensure that line managers make available learning time for each member of staff. 

You do not have to wait for your appraisal, however - raise protected learning time with your manager at the earliest opportunity to ensure you have time allocated.

Review of band 5 nursing roles

Review of Band 5 nursing roles

Band 5 nursing staff will be contacted in due course by their employer and invited to apply for a review of their role. If successful in their application, they will receive backdated pay from back when it is agreed that they have been working beyond their job description, but no further back than 1 April 2023.

We are currently working on further information about the process, resources to assist in completing the application and information sessions for reps and members. We will update members in the coming weeks about the process and the support we will provide - check your emails and this webpage for updates in future. 

Reduced Working Week

Reduced working week

From 1 April 2024 the normal working week for fulltime staff in NHS Scotland employed on Agenda for Change terms and conditions will be 37 hour per week, not 37.5 hours.

Staff on part-time hours will benefit from a pro rata reduction proportionate to full-time colleagues.

You will not see a loss of earnings as the hourly rate of pay will increase accordingly.

You are best placed to know how the reduction in the working week can be achieved. Managers will be considering how to implement the change and looking for your ideas.

In the first instance, at health board level, area partnership forums will make decisions on where hours can be reduced. Where it is not possible to immediately reduce the working week in your area, there is a temporary arrangement to pay the additional time worked as either excess time or overtime at the appropriate rate.

This approach is intended only to enable the changes and not as a long-term solution. For this reason, the temporary payment of overtime will not be considered contractual, so will not attract long-term pay protection once it ends.

The solution to the reduced working week might look different in different teams and clinical settings and be dependent on current shift patterns. The overall aim is to reduce the time that you are at work, without any loss of pay. Be clear though, that the way forward is not to increase unpaid breaks, which would serve to defeat the overall target of improved working conditions. Please share your ideas with your team and manager, and innovative thinking is encouraged.

We will be working with employers locally to ensure the reduced working week is implemented as quickly and safely as possible in your workplace. If you have any concerns about the approach or impact of the new arrangements, please reach out to your local RCN rep.

This initial reduction of 30 minutes is the first step toward a 36-hour working week. The Scottish government is committed to achieving 36-hour week by April 2026. Whilst you have told us that there will be challenges in implementation, reduced hours will help to recognise the significant demands and you and the need to maintain a positive work/life balance.

Frequently asked questions

Find out more about what implementation of the Agenda for Change review recommendations will mean to you

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Page last updated - 11/04/2024

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