We appreciate the efforts each individual makes to keep our organisation running smoothly and efficiently.
As a result, we offer a wide range of staff benefits, including a generous holiday allowance, season ticket loans, the chance to take a year off from your career and many other options.
Use this A to Z guide to see what you’re entitled to as a full- or part-time member of staff. We hope you’ll make use of what’s on offer.
Adoption leave
If you’re adopting a child, you can take up to six months’ paid adoption leave. If you’ve worked for us for more than six months at the beginning of the week of the approved match, you can take an extra six months’ unpaid leave.
Annual leave
As a full-time member of staff, you get 28 days paid holiday a year, plus public holidays. If you work part time, you’ll get a proportion of this holiday entitlement (pro rata), depending on how many days you work.
We give you more holiday than the law requires – the legal minimum is 20 days a year including Bank Holidays.
Carer’s leave
To help you maintain a balance between your home and working life, we realise you may need time off to care for family members, partners or close friends.
Childcare vouchers
If you use a registered childcare provider, for example, a childminder, nanny, play scheme or nursery, you can buy childcare vouchers to help you pay for childcare, and the money is deducted from your salary. You will benefit from tax and National Insurance breaks. Please note there is a limit to the amount of vouchers that can be purchased.
Compassionate leave
If you have been bereaved, you can take compassionate leave. You can also take leave if a close relative or friend is facing terminal illness, or you have an urgent personal problem.
Death in service benefit
We provide generous benefits to the person you nominate in the case of your death, paying twice your annual salary.
Employee Assistance Programme
We offer a telephone helpline and information service for workplace and other personal issues. It’s open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, on 0800 282193. The helpline offers you and your immediate family confidential and impartial help from an independent, external company.
Flexible working
If you need to tailor your hours to your personal circumstances, we will try and accommodate you with one of the following flexible working options:
- job share – where you and another person work different days of the week to cover one position
- part-time working – where you work less than 35 hours a week
- term-time working – where you don’t work during the school holidays (or you reduce your hours).
Please discuss your requirements with your line manager. We recognise the value of retaining experienced staff and aim to accommodate you as far as we can.
Health cash plan
Do you want to get cash back on dental treatment, glasses, physiotherapy and hospital stays? We’ve agreed a special rate with healthcare company Simplyhealth, who offer a health cash plan scheme.
Home working
Occasionally you may need to work from home as and when your personal circumstances require. Please discuss this with your line manager. We aim to promote a flexible working environment, where managers and employees can agree an arrangement that suits everyone.
Long service leave
If you work for us for ten years continuously, you will get a one-off bonus of four weeks’ extra paid leave. If you work part-time, you will get a proportion of the four weeks.
Learning and development
We’re committed to developing your skills and expertise to further your career and achieve our corporate aims. For example, we may be able to give you financial help with work-related studies, providing we have the resources available. To help you with your course, you may be able to take study leave and exam leave.
Maternity benefits
The law requires us to offer six months maternity leave and statutory maternity pay.
However, if you’ve worked for us for more than six months at the beginning of the fifteenth week before your baby is due, we offer a more generous package: six weeks on full pay, followed by 12 weeks on half pay plus statutory maternity pay (SMP), then eight weeks on SMP. You may then be able to take a further six months’ unpaid leave.
Parental leave
If you’re responsible for a child under five (or under 18 if the child is disabled), you can take up to 13 weeks’ unpaid parental leave. You can take a maximum of four weeks a year. This is in addition to any maternity, paternity or adoption leave you are eligible for.
Paternity leave
If your partner has a baby, you can take two weeks’ paid leave. We offer more generous paternity benefits than the law requires.
Pensions
We run two pension schemes, giving you a choice between a standard market investment or an ethical investment option. We encourage you to contribute between two and six per cent of your annual salary and will match this contribution.
The Pensions Trust, provider of pensions to the charity sector, manages the two schemes.
Sabbaticals
You can ask to take an unpaid career break of up to a year, after you’ve been working for us for two years. You’ll need to show us that you plan to undertake a project that will further your career and benefit the organisation. For example, you may want to do a research project or a course of study.
Season ticket loan
Once you’ve finished your probationary period, you can apply for an interest-free season ticket loan. The loan will be deducted from your salary over five or ten months.
Secondments
At some point in your career with us, you may wish to consider a secondment, where you’re attached to another department to gain experience of another field of work.
Your secondment could be within the Red Cross or you may work for another organisation, such as the UK government.
Sick pay
We offer a generous sick pay scheme, going beyond what the law requires. If you’ve been working for us for less than two years, you’ll get eight weeks’ full pay, followed by eight weeks’ half pay. If you’ve been with us for two years or more, you’ll get 13 weeks’ full pay, followed by 13 weeks’ half pay.
Unpaid leave
If you’ve used up all your annual leave and you need some extra time off for special reasons, you may be able to take unpaid leave.
Download the staff benefits brochure (PDF) on the right side of this page.
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