Introduction

It is recognised that medical trainees may have unforeseen, significant change in circumstances since the commencement of their current training programme. The Intra Programme Transfer (IPT) process has been put in place to support those medical trainees move between Severn Postgraduate Medical Education and Peninsula Postgraduate Medical Education where they meet the eligibility criteria.

An unforeseen, significant change in circumstances’ should relate to:

personal disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010 or
caring responsibilities or
parental responsibilities or
a committed relationship

It should be recognised that transfers are not an entitlement. IPTs will depend on compliance with the eligibility criteria and evidence requirements, and there being vacancies in Peninsula Postgraduate Medical Education and / or Severn Postgraduate Medical Education.

This process is not to be used for training programmes that over-arch between Severn Postgraduate Medical Education and Peninsula Postgraduate Medical Education. For those specialties listed below trainees should discuss their circumstances with their Training Programme Director for consideration to rotating to another location on the training programme.

General Surgery
Plastic Surgery
Respiratory Medicine
Urology
Cardiothoracic Surgery
Neurosurgery
Occupational Medicine
Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
Public Health Medicine
Renal Medicine

As Peninsula Postgraduate Medical Education and Severn Postgraduate Medical Education is one organisation under Health Education South West it is not possible to request a transfer between the two programmes through the national Inter Deanery Transfer process. The IPT process is the only mechanism for movement between programmes within Health Education South West.

Application Stage

It is the trainee’s responsibility to submit the correct supporting documents, with all sections completed and included.

Information provided, including information supplied on the application form and any attached supporting documents, should be completed to the best of trainee’s knowledge. If it is subsequently discovered that any statement is false or misleading, or that relevant information has been withheld, particularly on eligibility, criminal convictions and fitness to practice, an application may be disqualified and will be reported to the Postgraduate Dean / Responsible Officer.

Allocation

If there are more IPT requests than vacancies, priority will be given to trainees with a significant change in circumstances due to their own disability. Applications from trainees with change in circumstances related to caring or parental responsibilities or committed relationships will be considered equally afterwards.

If there are insufficient vacancies to facilitate a move for all trainees of equal weighting requesting a transfer, then a panel will review the applications and make a decision.

Those trainees who have not been allocated a transfer owing to lack of suitable vacant posts will be kept on file for six months and contacted should a suitable post become available.

Trainees who have been matched to vacant posts will be conditionally offered a transfer by email and will have to respond to this conditional offer within the designated time frame.

Once trainees have accepted their conditional offer to transfer a start date will be agreed with the trainee and the two Postgraduate Medical Education offices. Typically a trainee would have to work their three months’ notice with their current employer before transferring. The start date may also need to coincide with national recruitment timelines to ensure the Trust is not adversely affected by vacancies.

Less than Full-time (LTFT)

A trainee’s LTFT status will not be affected by the transfer provided the reasons for needing to train less than full time remain unchanged.

Out of Programme (OOP)

Trainees who are currently on OOP should not apply for a transfer unless they are within six months of their return to the training programme.

Maternity Leave

Trainees requesting an IPT while pregnant or on maternity leave should not apply unless they are within six months of their return to the training programme.

Academic Trainees

Academic Clinical Fellowship (ACF) and Clinical Lecturer (CL) trainees should first approach their Academic Supervisor to discuss their situation and they will need to obtain written agreement from both their current academic provider (Medical School holding the ACF or CL award) and the academic provider they wish to move to. This written confirmation should state that the releasing institution agrees to the NIHR funding being released, and that the receiving academic institution is able to deliver the academic training.

Once agreed by both academic providers, the ACF or CL trainee will need to get written agreement from the NIHR for the transfer of their funded award. The trainee needs to supply evidence of these agreements with their application.

These arrangements only apply to ACF and CL trainees requesting a transfer between the three Universities within Health Education South West; i.e. Bristol Medical School, University of Exeter Medical School and Plymouth University Peninsula Schools of Medicine and Dentistry.

Eligibility Criteria

Trainees must hold and NTN or DRN with Severn Postgraduate Medical Education or Peninsula Postgraduate Medical Education

Trainees must have experienced a change in their personal circumstances relating to one of the four criteria listed in section 10 after commencement in their current training programme.

Trainees must have been in their current training programme for at least nine months at the point of application.

Trainees should be at least six calendar months from the date of completion of their training programme when starting in post within the new region following a transfer.

Transfer requests will be subject to the trainee being in receipt of a satisfactory outcome ARCP 1 or RITA C.

Trainees are required to confirm they have no unresolved ‘cause for concern’ which may have been highlighted via the ARCP or RITA process.

Trainees must have the correct immigration status to be eligible to transfer. It is not possible to support the transfers of Tier 2 trainees as the IPT process does not constitute open competition and therefore does not fulfil the Resident Labour Market Test which is an essential requirement for employers to be able to apply for a Certificate of Sponsorship.

Application and Supporting Documents

Trainees applying for an IPT will need to submit the following:-

Application form, stating clearly the significant and unforeseen change in circumstances that has taken place since they started training.
Evidence supporting their application (further details available in section 10)
a copy of their most recent ARCP outcome (or Educational Supervisors Report if ARCP has yet to take place)

Criteria for a change in personal circumstances and Supporting Documents

Criterion 1 - personal disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010

The trainee has developed a disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010 following the commencement of their current programme for which treatment is an absolute requirement and where the treatment, care or social requirements can only be carried out in the geographical area the trainee has applied to relocate to, as confirmed by a report from their Occupational Health Physician, GP or their medical specialist.

Evidence to support Criterion 1 – ‘Supporting Document A’

Supporting Document A must be completed by the trainee and by an Occupational Health Physician, GP or medical specialist, who will be required to:

confirm that the trainee has a disability according to the Equality Act 2010
describe the nature of the ongoing treatment and frequency of the follow up required
state why the reasonable adjustment of a transfer needs to be made and how a move would support the trainee in their change of circumstances.

Definition of 'disability' under the Equality Act 2010

The Equality Act 2010 defines a disabled person as someone who has a physical or mental impairment, which the impairment has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on his or her ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.

For the purposes of the Act:

substantial means more than minor or trivial
long term means that the effect of the impairment has lasted or is likely to last for at least 12 months (there are special rules covering recurring or fluctuating conditions)
normal day-to-day activities include everyday things like eating, washing, walking and going shopping.

Some conditions, such as a tendency to set fires or addictions to non-prescribed substances, are specifically excluded.

People who have had a disability in the past that meets the above definition are also covered by the scope of the Act.

There are additional provisions relating to people with progressive conditions. People with HIV, cancer and multiple sclerosis are protected by the Act from the point of diagnosis.

Criterion 2 - caring responsibilities

The trainee is the primary carer for someone who is disabled as defined by the Equality Act 2010, expected to be a partner, sibling, parent or child, and these responsibilities have changed significantly following the commencement of their current programme, resulting in the need to move location, since the commencement of training. Trainees who provide care for a person as part of a group of carers, e.g. a family, are not eligible to apply under this criterion.

Evidence to support Criterion 2 – ‘Supporting Document B’

Supporting Document B must be completed by the trainee and by the General Practitioner or Social Worker of the person being cared for by the trainee and will consist of:

a statement confirming the trainee’s role as primary carer for the person being cared for.
a care plan for the person being cared for.

Criterion 3 - parental responsibilities

The trainee is a parent or legal guardian of a child (or children) under the age of 18 who reside primarily with them, and for whom they have had significant change in caring responsibilities following the commencement of their current programme, resulting in the need to move location.

Evidence to support Criterion 3 – ‘Supporting Document C’

Supporting Document C must be completed by the trainee and also a signatory. The signatory must be the trainee’s current Educational Supervisor or Training Programme Director who will confirm, to the best of their knowledge, that they are aware of the change in personal circumstances occurring.

Criterion 4 - committed relationship

The trainee has had a significant change in personal circumstances due to a committed relationship that could not have been foreseen following the commencement of their current programme, resulting in the need to move location.

Evidence to support Criterion 4 – ‘Supporting Documents D’

Supporting Document D must be completed by the trainee and also a signatory. The signatory must be the trainee’s current Educational Supervisor or Training Programme Director who will confirm, to the best of their knowledge, that they are aware of the change in personal circumstances occurring.

Panel Review

Applications for an IPT will be reviewed by the following:

Deputy Postgraduate Dean (or nominated deputy) in Severn Postgraduate Medical Education
Deputy Postgraduate Dean (or nominated deputy) in Peninsula Postgraduate Medical Education
Specialty Training Manager
Lay Person

As there is no fixed window for the IPT process applications will be reviewed remotely. Trainees should be notified of the outcome of their application within four weeks of submitting their application.

Complaints and Appeals

There is no mechanism for appealing the decision of the panel.

It is not possible to complain on the grounds of:-

if you disagree with the principle or contents the IPT process, which includes the eligibility criteria; or
if you disagree with the outcomes of the IPT process; or
if you allege unfairness of practice and process but do not supply evidence to substantiate your allegation; or
if you were judged eligible to be entitled to a transfer but there were insufficient vacancies to allocate a transfer to you.

If a trainee feels that their application has been treated unfairly or process has not been followed they should submit a complaint to the Postgraduate Dean. You must provide full evidence to substantiate your complaint. The Postgraduate Dean will then arrange for your complaint to be investigated.

This page was last updated July 16th 2019 (5 years ago)

Inter Programme Transfer - South West

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