Transfer letter questions and answers
Update on Transfer Letter mailbox – 3 August 2021
The Staff Transfer Letter functional mailbox (FMB) will close on Wednesday 4th August at 5pm. Any existing queries submitted to the mailbox will be dealt with. We have been prioritising pay affecting queries ahead of the July payroll but will respond to existing queries very shortly and appreciate your patience.
From Thursday 5th August, for all new queries about staff transfer or your pay, please contact SSCL who will be help you with your query. New queries submitted to the FMB after the deadline will need to be redirected to SSCL – they will not be auto-forwarded. When contacting SSCL, you will need your employee number (found on your payslip) to verify your identity. You can find more details about how to contact SSCL about pay or your transfer letter queries on our Support Pages.
Update on Transfer Letter enquiries – 6 July 2021
We have been working hard to respond to your transfer letter queries and we would like to thank you for your patience whilst waiting for a response to any queries you have submitted. We are experiencing an increasing number of queries in the mailbox that do not relate to the content of transfer letters. As we want to respond to your transfer letter queries as quickly as possible, we would ask you to help us do this by only submitting queries that relate to the content of your transfer letter.
If you have any other HR queries, please check the information available on the Welcome Hub by visiting our Support and How to Get in Touch pages or use the search facility at the top right of this page.
If you cannot find an answer to your query on the Welcome Hub and it specifically relates to pay, your employee record, SOP system support or absence from work records please call SSCL via the dedicated transferring staff telephone line on 0345 241 5351 choosing option 1 then option 7 or visit the SSCL ‘contact us’ page on MyHub.
Should your query remain unanswered, please discuss this with your line manager who can liaise with the regional HR team if required.
Please continue to scroll down to the bottom of this page for Frequently Asked Questions about Transfer letters.
Ensuring staff receive their transfer letters with the correct information is an absolute priority for us. We have received a large number of queries into the functional mailbox (transferletterqueries@justice.gov.uk) relating to a number of issues including hours, role title and inaccuracies with pay.
- We are prioritising pay related queries
- All other queries relating to transfer letters will responded to as soon as possible
- We will not be able to respond to any queries that do not relate to your transfer letter from this this mailbox. You can find lots of information on our support and how to get in touch page, including queries on SOP, your location and technology.
Please not to send duplicate queries into the mailbox as this slows down the process of responding. Likewise, queries not directly related to your transfer letter, such as the Job Evaluation Scheme (JES), role alignment appeals or general queries about your transfer should not be sent into the Staff Transfer Letter mailbox.
If these FAQs don’t assist with your query, then please do report any issues with the letters to transferletterqueries@justice.gov.uk including your staff number and a copy of your letter if possible. If you haven’t received a letter, you should flag this to the mailbox and please do note that not receiving your letter will not impact on your ability to transfer.
Once again, we appreciate the anxiety and frustration these issues are causing and you have our assurance we are doing all we can to resolve them as quickly as possible.
Transfer letter questions and answers
Click the + to see the answers to these questions.
I still haven’t received my staff transfer letter -does that mean I won’t transfer?
Over 7000 letters have been issued to transferring staff. We are working hard to resolve the remaining letters to be issued which is c150 and these letters will be sent by Friday 25th June. Any delay in receiving your letter does not affect your transfer to the Probation Service and we do acknowledge how important it is that you receive this.
I have sent my query to the Staff Transfer mailbox but haven’t had a reply yet. What do I do?
Please be assured if you have sent your email to: transferletterqueries@justice.gov.uk , we have received this and it is being dealt with. You will receive an update email when your issue has been reviewed and resolved – we will respond to this as quickly as possible and in most complex queries you can expect a response no later than 3 weeks from your query being submitted. Please do not send duplicate e-mails into the mailbox as this will simply slow down our ability to respond to you as quickly as possible. If you do a require an updated transfer letter, this will be issued and this will not prevent you from transferring into the Probation Service.
I have submitted a query about the pay details on my Staff Transfer Letter -I haven’t heard back from you
We are prioritising pay queries as these may require us to verify details with current employers before 26th June. All queries which have been received are currently being dealt with. You will receive an updated email when your issue has been reviewed and resolved. If we confirm errors in your transfer letter, these will be corrected, and you will receive a revised transfer letter which will supersede the original.
I work part time hours but my transfer letter shows me working a 37 hour working week. Are you changing my working hours?
Your transfer does not affect your part time status, or the hours you work, which will remain the same on transfer. If you are a CRC employee and covered by the National Agreement, your transfer letter advises you that you will move to a 37 hour working week. This is highlighted as currently some transferring staff have different full time hours e.g. 36/39 and this affects how pay is assimilated. It does not change the actual hours you work. If you currently work 24 hours, then you will continue to work 24 hours upon transfer . We will not be issuing additional letters to reflect part time status.
If you are a parent organisation or supply chain employee, your transfer letter should state your actual working hours. There is guidance on the Welcome Hub giving you further clarity on how to then calculate your FTE salary into your part time working arrangements. Read the guidance here.
Through the Role Alignment process I have been aligned to a differently (higher or lower) banded role.
If you have been aligned to a different role through the matching process, (not via an appeal), your letter should contain the correct details and reflect your new role/ banding. If your alignment is via the appeals/ 1-2-1- process then as the role alignment process concludes, outcomes will be fed through for payroll and transfer letter purposes where changes are required and backdated to 26 June. New letters will be issued as needed.
I am still waiting to hear about the outcome of role alignment appeal -what does this mean for my transfer?
Having an outstanding appeal will not impact your transfer. Transfer letters issued will not reflect your role alignment appeal outcome as this activity has been taking place in parallel. As the role alignment process is concluded, outcomes will be fed through for payroll and transfer letter purposes where changes are required, and new letters will be issued as needed.
Why is my transferring pay based on current salary and not my time in service?
Parent Organisation / Supply Chain staff will transfer on their existing contractual pay. All transferring CRC staff are subject to the National Agreement which was collectively bargained with our recognised Trade Unions and received a positive ballot outcome from members. Included in the National Agreement was pay assimilation which uses current salary and does not use length service in the calculation. Read more about pay assimilation here.
I’m confused about ‘Start Date’ and ‘Continuity of Employment’
The start date on your letter is the start of your service with HMPPS. Your ‘Date of Continuous Employment’ is recorded on SOP and can only be seen by your line manager. After transfer, you can check with your line manager what date is holding on SOP and if incorrect, this can be rectified.
I am affected by the Interventions Job Evaluation Scheme (JES) appeal and have a question.
We will not be responding to JES queries from the staff transfer mailbox. Whilst the JES appeals process is underway, your staff transfer letter states the current role you are aligned to so is correct. Please send any job evaluation queries to: Strengthening.Probation@justice.gov.uk
I don’t know the location of where I will be expected to work -what do I do?
Our expectation is that the majority of staff will continue to work in the same contractual location after transfer unless you have been informed otherwise by your current employer due to a circumstance such as an office closure. Any location changes have been discussed with current employers during measures consultation.
Will my LGPS pension transfer when I transfer to the Probation Service?
As confirmed on the Welcome Hub Pension pages, those who are currently LGPS members through GMPF will continue to be members of this scheme on transfer into the Probation Service. A new pension pot will be started in GMPF (as per their processes) and members will be able to link their pension records together.