AfC News Archive

Agenda For Change Learning Pack: 01 December 2005; Agenda For Change Learning Pack -The learning pack on Agenda for Change for General Practice has now been finalised and copies are available in the Organisational Development Section.

Electronic Job Analysis Questionnaire (JAQ): 21 September 2005 | Job Evaluation; The Electronic Job Analysis Questionnaire (JAQ) along with the guidance notes and requirements have now been published on the Job Evaluation section.
Staff Council Guidance on Requirements for Job Evaluation Equalities Monitoring: 24 August 2005 | Job Evaluation; An Equalities Sub Group of the NHS Staff Council is to be established and one of its key tasks will be to undertake an equality assessment of the new pay system. This guidance note is intended to give preliminary guidance on the information that needs to be collected to allow equality monitoring in relation to the job evaluation process.
KSF Implementation Timetable: 15 July 2005 | Knowledge and Skills Framework; In order to address some of the capacity concerns raised with respect to full implementation of the Knowledge and Skills Framework (KSF), the Scottish Pay Reference and Implementation Group (SPRIG) has proposed a proposal to the Executive of the NHS Staff Council that the deadline for the development of individual post outlines and personal development plans be deferred by six months to 31 March 2006. Please see the SPRIG letter for further details.
Job Analysis Questionnaire (JAQ): 15 July 2005 | Job Evaluation; The Job Analysis Questionnaire (JAQ) and guidance have now been published on the Job Evaluation section.
Flowchart for the New AfC Terms & Conditions: 15 July 2005 | Terms and Conditions; The Terms and Conditions Guidance and Interpretation Group have issued the Flowchart for the New AfC Terms & Conditions as an aid to the comprehension of the new terms and conditions.
June 2005
SPRIG Dates: 29 June 2005 | SPRIG; SPRIG have issued a full list of proposed dates and venues for meetings in 2005.
Dates of Networking Events: 29 June 2005 | General; The Pay Modernisation Team have issued the dates of the Networking Events for August to December 2005.
Job Profiles State of Play for June 2005: 29 June 2005 | Job Evaluation; The Job Profiles State of Play update for June 2005 has now been published. New profiles for June have been published on the DoH website including; new profiles for Optometrist Consultant, Head of Service (Band 8C-8D) in HSS-OP, Director of Estates and Facilities, Supplies and Procurement and reviewed profiles for Speech & Language Therapists, Human Resources and catering. For full details please visit the DoH site.
SPRIG June News Brief: 29 June 2005 | SPRIG; SPRIG have published a News Brief providing an update on the work currently being undertaken fo Agenda for Change.
Terms and Conditions FAQ Update: 29 June 2005 | Terms and Conditions; The FAQ page of the Terms and Conditions section have been updated with the responses to over 25 new questions added.
Job Profiles State of Play for May 2005: 6 June 2005 | Job Evaluation; The Job Profiles State of Play update for May 2005 has now been published on the Modernisation Agency website.
May 2005
Amendment No.2 to the T&Cs Handbook: 17 May 2005 | Terms and Conditions; The second amendment to the of the new NHS Terms and Conditions of Service which covers the new rates of pay and allowances as set out in Section 2 and Annexes C and R has now been added to the Terms and Conditions section. The new rates of pay and allowances will come into effect from 1 April 2005 as specified in the arrangements which were approved by Scottish Ministers on 5 May 2005 in NHS Circular PCS(AFC)2005/4 (see the Direction for details).
Job Matching Consistency Checklist: 9 May 2005 | Job Evaluation; The Job Evaluation Working Party (JEWP) have issued a Consistency Checklist to help those involved in matching roles to a national job profiles. This checklist deals with the actual process of consistency checking. Advice on consistency procedures is given in the Job Evaluation Handbook. This checklist supplements this advice but does not replace it.
Matching to Reviewed Profiles: 9 May 2005 | Job Evaluation; The NHS Staff Council have issued guidance on the process for incorporating additional reviewed profiles in CAJE.
Changes to KSF Documentation: 9 May 2005 | Knowledge and Skills Framework; The KSF Outline Development Form has now been replaced by the NHS KSF Outline and the Foundation Gateway Form.
April 2005
New/Updated Job Profiles: 25 April 2005 | Job Evaluation; There has been a number of updates to the Job Profiles section of the Department for Health site including new profiles for Ambulance Practitioners and Dental Nurses and reviewed profiles for Clinical Psychologists, biomedical students, clinical support workers, Pharmacy Support Workers and Technicians. The profiles along with an updated spreadsheet detailing all the current profiles can be viewed on the DoH site.
State of Play April 2005: 25 April 2005 | Job Evaluation; The Executive of the NHS Staff Council has issued an update on the state of play for Job Profiles to assist local NHS organisations in planning the assimilation of staff onto the implementation of Agenda for Change.
Amendment to Working Time Regulations: 21 April 2005 | Terms and Conditions; The NHS Circular PCS(AFC)2005/3 - Agenda for Change Terms and Conditions of Service Handbook Amendment to Section 27: Working Time Regulations has been published on the Terms and Conditions section.
SPRIG Notes: 15 April 2005 | SPRIG; The notes for the meetings held on the 16 and 30 of March 2005 have now been published on the SPRIG page.
March 2005
New/Reviewed Job Profiles: 18 March 2005 | Job Evaluation; The following profiles have been added to the DoH site:

reviewed profiles for Occupational Therapists and new profile for Occupational Therapist Advanced (Community) (in Allied health professions: OTs)
reviewed profiles for Porters (within Support services: sterile services and hotel services)
new profiles for Librarians (within Administrative services: IM&T)

A spreadsheet with a list of the published profiles organised by job family has been provided to make it easier to find the appropriate profile.

Guidance on Using the Health and Wellbeing Dimensions

18 March 2005 | Knowledge and Skills Framework

Following UK consultation with KSF leads and as agreed at the KSF Development Group, new guidance has now been issued on the Health & Wellbeing Dimensions for KSF.

New Job Evaluation and Terms and Conditions Sections Added

11 March 2005 | General

The new Job Evaluation and Terms and Conditions sections have been added to the Agenda for Change site. These pages can now be accessed from the navigation menu at the left of the page.

New Nursing and Occupational Therapy Core Job Description Templates

11 March 2005 | Job Evaluation

The latest core job description templates for nursing and Occupational Therapy have now been added to the templates page.

State of Play on Profiles

7 March 2005 | Job Evaluation

The Executive of the NHS Staff Council have issued an Advisory Note that explains the current state of play in respect of reviewed and new profiles. It is intended to assist organisations in drawing up matching schedules, but should not be seen as definitive.

Note: This item has been superceded by the April 2005 update.

Issue 2 of The Agenda Newsletter

7 March 2004 | General

The February edition of The Agenda newsletter has been published on the Modernisation Agency website.

SPRIG - 2 February Action Points

1 March 2005 | SPRIG

The reviewed December profiles which include Pharmacy, Chaplaincy and Nursery Nurses have now been published on the Department of Health website.

February 2005

SPRIG - 17 January Action Points

11 February 2005 | SPRIG

The Action Points for the 17 January 2005 SPRIG meeting are now available for viewing on the SPRIG page.

January 2005

January Job Profiles

31 January 2004 | Job Evaluation / Profiles

The January Batch 1 and Batch 2 Job Profiles, which include revised profiles for physiotherapy, clinical support workers and community practice teacher are now available on the Department of Health website.

December Job Profiles

31 January 2005 | Job Evaluation / Profiles

The December Batch 2 and Batch 3 Job Profiles, which include the reviewed profiles for Orthoptists, Professional Managers, Estates Maintenance, Secretarial, Admin & Clerical and Theatre Nurse and new profiles for Play Specialists, Admin & Clerical and Theatre Practitioners are now available on the Department of Health website.

Agenda for Change Final Agreement (December 2004)

31 January 2005 | Terms and Conditions

The final version of the agreement between the UK Health Departments, NHS Confederation, Unions and Professional Bodies to modernise the NHS pay system is now available on the Department of Health website.

SPRIG - December Action Points

25 January 2005 | SPRIG

The Action Points for the 17 January 2005 SPRIG meeting are now available for viewing on the SPRIG page.

NHS Terms and Conditions of Service Handbook - Final Version

24 January 2005 | Terms and Conditions

The Agenda for Change NHS Terms and Conditions of Service Handbook contains full details of all the new conditions of service agreed in partnership for all NHS staff covered by the new pay system. These conditions of service are common to NHS staff across Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

December 2004

Guidance on Implementation Issues

22 December 2004 | Implementation

As we introduce the new terms and conditions of service under Agenda for Change it is important that staff are kept fully informed of developments and that they understand the implications of these new conditions of service. The first of these were implemented on 1 December 2004 with some backdated to 1 October 2004. Staff will have already received a booklet explaining the new pay system together with a short letter outlining the immediate changes to their terms and conditions of service.

The Scottish Pay Reference and Implementation Group (SPRIG), a partnership group with a remit to oversee the implementation of Agenda for Change, recently discussed the need to develop further guidance on the new terms and conditions of service. As a result of these discussions two documents have been produced which will provide further guidance to ensure that staff fully understand the new pay system and to ensure that the new terms and conditions of service are applied consistently across NHSScotland.

These documents are:

A letter for all staff explaining in more detail some of the key changes to conditions of service (Implementation Guidance Letter No 1)
An Extended Guidance Document to enable staff, managers and staff side representatives to explain aspects of the new pay system to staff locally as may be required. (Implementation Guidance Letter No 1 – Extended Guidance for Managers, HR Staff and Trades Union Representatives)

Further guidance will be issued as required throughout the implementation process of Agenda for Change.

December Profiles

20 December 2004 | Job Evaluation / Profiles

The reviewed December profiles which include Pharmacy, Chaplaincy and Nursery Nurses have now been published on the Department of Health website.

November 2004

New Core Job Templates

30 November 2004 | Job Evaluation / Templates

Additional Core NHS Job Templates for Radiographers and Midwifery have now been published on the Agenda for Change Core NHS Job Description Templates page.

Agenda for Change Final Agreement (November 2004)

26 November 2004 | Terms & Conditions

The Agenda for Change Final Agreement (November 2004) has now been published. This is the final version, subject to proof-reading, of the agreement between the UK Health Departments, NHS Confederation, Unions and Professional Bodies to modernise the NHS pay system as agreed at the NHS Staff Council meeting on 23 November 2004. The proof-read version will be available on the website in December 2004.

Update: This document has now been superceded by the Agenda for Change Final Agreement (December 2004).

NHS Terms and Conditions of Service Handbook

26 November 2004 | Terms & Conditions

The NHS Terms and Conditions of Service Handbook has now been published. This is the final version, subject to proof-reading, of the NHS Terms and Conditions of Service Handbook as agreed at the NHS Staff Council meeting on 23 November 2004. The proof-read version will be available on the website in December 2004.

Update: This document has now been superceded by the NHS Terms and Conditions of Service Handbook - Final Version.

Pay Protection Under Agenda for Change

26 November 2004 | Terms & Conditions

Section 46 of the new Terms and Conditions Handbook outlines arrangements that are in place for any member of staff requiring pay protection as a result of assimilation to the new Agenda for Change pay system. These arrangements allow for one year of pay protection with a pay uplift and a further five years protection on a mark time basis. In Scotland, the Minister for Health and Community Care, in April 2003, agreed slightly different protection arrangements for staff working within NHSScotland. These arrangements are outlined in the attached letter.

Health Minister Welcomes Unions Sign-off for AfC

25 November 2004 | About

The Health Minister Andy Kerr has welcomed the decision by NHS unions to endorse Agenda for Change, the new pay reform package for 130,000 NHS Scotland staff. See news release for details.

New Core Job Templates

22 November 2004 | Job Evaluation / Templates

The Organisational/Human Resources Sub-group have completed Version 1 of the OD/HR Workplan which sets out the priorities for consideration during 2004/5.

New Reviewed Profiles

17 November 2004 | Job Evaluation

The reviewed profiles for Nursing and Midwifery and Allied Health Professions; dietetics, podiatry and radiography have now been published on the Department of Health website.

Agenda for Change - Staff Booklet

8 November 2004 | About

The new staff booklet Agenda for Change: What will it mean for you? provides an overview of the new Agenda for Change pay system and what it means to staff in NHS Scotland. Copies of the guide will be distributed to all organisations across NHS Scotland.

Guidance for Developing/Updating Job Descriptions

8 November 2004 | Job Evaluation

A new step-by-step guide for developing/updating job descriptions has been added to the site with links to the relevant guidance notes and blank Job Description template. An index of Core NHS Job Description Templates is currently being developed by the Scottish Pilot sites as a guide for creating and updating Job Descriptions that are inline with the requirements of the Job Evaluation process. The first templates for nursing posts are now available on the job templates index page. More templates will be added as they are made available.

October SPRIG Action Points

8 November 2004 | SPRIG

The action points from the October meetings of the Scottish Pay Reference and Implementation Group (SPRIG) are now available from the new SPRIG page.

October 2004

SPRIG Action Points

19 October 2004 | SPRIG

The action points of the Scottish Pay Reference and Implementation Group (SPRIG) are now available from the new SPRIG page.

Job Evaluation and KSF Handbooks

15 October 2004 | General

The final versions of the DoH Job Evaluation Handbook Second Edition (October 2004) and the Knowledge and Skills Framework and the Development Review Process (October 2004) are now available in PDF format at the Agenda for Change section of the Department of Health website.

Update: The Scottish Versions of the Job Evaluation Handbook and the KSF and Development Review have now been published (1 February 2005).

Generic Finance Profiles

15 October 2004 | Job Evaluation

The Generic Finance Job Profiles have now been approved. Details of the new profiles and those that have been superceded are available from the Department of Health website.

Job Description Template

7 October 2004 | Job Evaluation / Job Description

SPRIG has issued a template Job Description with an accompanying flowchart outlining the process for the updating/development and agreement of Job Descriptions. The template has been provided as guidance to ensure that aspects of the new NHS Job Evaluation Factor Plan are included within existing Job Descriptions (for more details see the letter to the service issued on 7 October 2004).

Benefits Realisation

4 October 2004 | Modernisation Agency

A new Benefits Realisation Section has been added to the NHS Modernisation Agency website. The new section will provide a range of materials to help plan and agree objectives and set out clear local benefits from Agenda for Change.

August 2004

AfC Final Draft Documentation

24 August 2004 | Dept of Health

The following documents are now available on the Department of Health Pay Modernisation website:

These documents are at final draft stage to be approved by the Shadow NHS Staff Council and will be used to support national roll-out if final implementation of Agenda for Change is agreed.

Update: With the exception of the IE review all of the documents have been superceded by the final agreed versions.

Findings of the Pilot Sites

23 August 2004 | Job Evaluation / Templates

The Scottish Pay Reference and Implementation Group (SPRIG) established the four pilots last year to carry out "dry run" testing of various aspects of the Agenda for Change pay system, as a complement to the 12 Early Implementation (EI) sites established in England. As with the EI sites, the findings of the pilot sites were used to inform the UK-wide review of Agenda for Change which published it's conclusions last week. A joint statement was issued by the Shadow Executive of the NHS Staff Council on 11 August saying that, subject to agreement, Agenda for Change would be implemented from 1 December 2004 with an effective date of 1 October 2004, with the exception of the proposed arrangements for pay enhancements for staff working unsocial hours.

The agreement to hold back on introduction of the new unsocial hours provisions until 2006 makes it likely that some of the conclusions on costs and protection contained in the pilot site reports published will not apply when Agenda for Change is implemented in December. In particular, initial analysis of the implications of retaining existing unsocial hours arrangements until 2006 indicates that levels of pay protection for NHS staff will be lower than those indicated in the reports. This is because a high proportion of pay protection found in the pilot sites was attributable to the previous proposals on unsocial hours which the pilot sites were asked to test.

There is a wealth of information in these reports which will help to inform and aid NHS Scotland's preparations for bringing in the new system. Managers and staff across NHS Scotland will be able to learn from the experience of the pilot sites and the learning points contained in the reports as we move towards the proposed implementation of AfC in December.

Note: In order to protect the confidentiality of individual members of staff it is not possible to disseminate the full reports from West Lothian, NHS Highland, or the Golden Jubilee National Hospital. The following staff at pilot sites would be happy to respond to any queries about their individual reports:

NHS Lothian