Top tips for using the staffing support fund

1. The staffing support fund can be used to cover costs and services including additional staff, overtime payments, temporary salary increases, training, and bought-in services.

2. When speaking to the Payroll Services team, if relevant, you should provide casework data and information on how your workload has changed over the last six months, or one to two years.

3. Explain the steps you've already taken to manage workloads or stay within your budget, and why additional support is still needed.

4. Include any factors which have increased demand, such as ongoing HR concerns, major incidents, severe weather or school closures, and attach supporting evidence where possible. You should also include details such as start dates, contract lengths, or hours worked where relevant to your request.

5. Remember, there are no lengthy application forms or approval processes, and approved funding is published in aggregate and not broken down by office. You don’t need to have exhausted your staffing budget before requesting additional funding, but you should have a plan for how you will use it during the remainder of the year.