New appointments to St Mary's University are subject to a probationary period. A probationary period is designed to:
- support new members of staff while they are settling into the University
- give the University time to assess the suitability of new members of staff
- provide a framework within which areas of concern can be identified, addressed, and resolved.
Effective probation is important for both career development and as a means of assessing an individual’s competence to do the job to which they are appointed. The probationary period is a positive two-way process designed to assist you to integrate into your new role, with emphasis on support and development.
The period of probation should give the employee the opportunity to develop the necessary skills to carry out the job effectively and to develop their career. Standard probationary periods differ if your member of staff works in Academia or Professional Services. The probationary period are also stated contracts of employment.
Probation policy
All academic staff have a 12 month probation period. As a line manager you should hold four probation meetings during the 12-month probation period – at the three, six, nine, and 12-month stages. The forms below should be used to record those meetings.
If the individual is successful in completing their probation period, the HR Helpdesk will issue a congratulatory end of probation letter to your staff member. If they require an extension to their probation period, please let your HR Business Partner know.
Once the probation forms are completed please send them to hrhelpdesk@stmarys.ac.uk where they will be stored in the employees edocs.
The probation period for a professional services employee is 6 months with review meetings every two months. For the first two review meetings, a probation form must be completed and sent to the HR Helpdesk. The final probation meeting will enable you and your employPee to discuss the progress your staff member has made within their role.
If the individual is successful in completing their probation period, the HR Helpdesk will issue a congratulatory end of probation letter to your staff member. If they require an extension to their probation period, please let your HR Business Partner know.
Once the probation forms are completed please send them to hrhelpdesk@stmarys.ac.uk where they will be stored in the employees eDocs.
All staff are expected to complete the essential e-learning modules during their probation period. Staff can access these via. SMILE.
As a line manager you may extend the period of probation in appropriate circumstances, for example where there are concerns that the employee has not met the standard for confirmation of appointment within the one year probationary period or where there has been a significant period of absence. Extension should generally only be considered where there is a realistic probability of the employee meeting the required performance standards in the additional period. The length of the extension should be appropriate to the time required for the individual to develop and demonstrate the necessary skills to undertake the job effectively. The maximum period of extension is three months.
If the employee has not met the required standards of performance, despite the support they have been given or offered during their probationary period, a decision can be taken to terminate the probationary period at this stage and notice given that their employment with theUniversity will end. The notice to be given will depend on what was stated in the contract of employment. Our academic contracts generally state that 'during your probationary period your employment may be terminated by St Mary's University, Twickenham on giving three month's written notice'. Do check what was outlined in the employee’s contract and employment and make sure you follow this exactly. The employee should be written to immediately confirming that they have not successfully completed their probation period and that their employment is being ended. If you need further help and guidance on terminating during probation then please contact your HR Business Partner for your area.
Once a new employee has completed their probation, you, as the line manager, still need to maintain focus on their performance and their learning and development. The new employee will by now be capable and competent to carry out the role and it is important that they are set clear objectives at this stage. It is likely to be the case that end of an individual’s probation does not coincide with the annual review or appraisal process so it is important that your appraisal process provides a way for managers to bridge the gap between the completion of probation and the annual review cycle. It is recommended this is done at the end of probation by having an interim review meeting where line managers set business objectives and put in place a development plan for the reminder of the year. Depending on the length of period this needs to cover it may be a light touch approach, building on the objectives set during probation and continuing training and development in the role. Equally it could be for a period as long as six months in which case appropriate objectives and development plans need to be put in place in line with your company appraisal process.