Renfrewshire Council

This policy is for all council employees, except teachers who have their own supporting attendance arrangements. 

Our aims are to: 

• support improvements in attendance levels 
• encourage earlier returns to work 
• make sure unauthorised absence is avoided. 

The health, safety and wellbeing of our colleagues remains our number one priority. 

During your employment with the Council, there may be a variety of reasons why you may need time off, from short-term sickness to longer-term health issues. The Managing Absence Policy will help us to support your needs and enable you to return to work as quickly as possible.  

Looking after yourself 

You are encouraged to look after your lifestyle choices and take personal responsibility for your own health and wellbeing, to enable you to attend work. This will result in an overall healthier, more engaged and more productive work environment, and reduce any negative impact on your own and other colleagues' wellbeing when you are absent from work. 

For managers 

For managers there are: 

• template letters and forms on the intranet (you'll need to be on a Council device)
• training courses. 

If your sickness began before 4 March 2024 

If your sickness began under the Supporting Attendance Policy, before the Managing Absence Policy started on 4 March 2024, you'll continue to be managed by the process of the Supporting Attendance Policy until your periods of absence review ends.

Your manager can continue to access the Supporting Attendance documents on the intranet. You'll need to be on a Council device to access the intranet. 

However, the supportive return to work provisions contained within the revised Managing Absence policy in relation to phased return and leave entitlement can be applied to enable an earlier return to work. 

Policy document 

Managing Absence Policy [167KB] . 

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