Additional, Special and Compassionate leave

You may request additional leave to cover instances where you need to be absent from study that are not covered by Family or Medical leave. The types of leave available are listed below.

If you need to request leave under any of the following, please contact the Doctoral College Office (Academic Registry) in the first instance.

Additional leave can be requested for the following:

  • Carer’s leave – If you need to give or arrange care for a dependant with a long-term care need (disability, care related to illness or injury, or care related to old age), you can request Carer leave of up to 5 days per year.
  • Additional disability leave associated with delayed adjustments – if you experience delays with implementation of agreed reasonable adjustments that lead to you being unable to study on your research degree.
  • Public duties – such as jury service.
  • Health and Safety – If you are unable to study due to health and safety concerns outside of the University’s control.

Expected submission deadlines and studentships administered by the University may be extended to account for periods of additional leave.

 

 

There may be times when you experience unfortunate and difficult life events. At these times, special leave can be requested.

  • Special leave – examples include, but are not limited to:
    • Emergency situations such as serious illness or injury involving dependents
    • Domestic emergency, or emergency at home, for example flooding.
    • Other events that create significant disruption that cannot be accommodated through flexible working.
  • Compassionate leave – Granted after the loss of a parent, close relative or child, or in the event of a lost pregnancy.

Expected submission deadlines and studentships administered by the University may be extended to account for periods of Special or Compassionate leave.

A Doctoral Researcher is entitled to this leave, in addition to Special Leave, if the Doctoral Researcher is

  1. the mother/birth parent or
  2. the father/non-birth parent/partner of the birth mother (as defined in the UKRI Terms and Conditions for Training; see the 'UKRI training grants: standard terms and conditions of training grant' PDF, section TGC 8.1.2) and
  3. the baby is stillborn or born at any stage of pregnancy in or beyond week 24 of the pregnancy but dies within the first 52 weeks of being born.

This is irrespective of whether the child was stillborn, dies within the first 28 days (neonatal death) or dies at any other time in the first 52 weeks. The Doctoral Researcher will be provided the same amount of Family Leave as they would have been provided had the child survived. If the Doctoral Researcher is already on Family Leave, this should continue unless the Doctoral Researcher expressly requests to return to study early.

Expected submission deadlines and studentships administered by the University may be extended to account for periods leave due to baby loss.