Study leave for trainee doctors
The information below applies to doctors in training at grades F1, F2, ST1-8, CT 1-3, IMT1-3, DCT, or GPST1-3.
For consultants, SAS doctors, and all locally employed doctors, see our study leave for senior staff.
On this page:
If you are a senior doctor or internal staff member, see our study leave for senior doctors and internal staff.
Trainee study leave entitlement per year
| Grade | Time allowance |
|---|---|
| F1 | No allowance – can borrow up to 5 days from F2 allowance for Tasters in in different specialties |
| F2 | 10 days – less any days taken in F1 year |
| CMT / IMT / DCT / ST 1-8 | 30 days |
| GPST in HOSPITAL Rotations | 10 days per 4-month rotation. Trainees are required to use some of their study leave allowance to attend at least 1 VTS Wednesday afternoon teaching session per month. 1 day of study leave allowance should be reserved for your GP ES Review leaving a total of 7 days available per 4 months. |
| GPST in GP SURGERY / ITP or PSYCH Placements | 10 days per 4 months pro-rata, however 5 days are deducted due to weekly VTS Wednesday afternoon teaching sessions which leaves 5 days total. We deliver a minimum of 10 Wednesday afternoon half day VTS teaching sessions per 4 months cycle which is how the 5 days are calculated. |
| Less Than Full Time (LTFT) | Allowance will be calculated pro-rata |
How to apply for study leave
All applications must be submitted 8 weeks before the date of the study leave, to allow enough time to go through the approval procedure. Retrospective Study Leave forms cannot be accepted - you must apply for Study Leave before the date of the Study Leave event.
All estimated costs should be included in the application, as these cannot be approved after the event.
Any requests with total costs amounting to £1,000 or more will require additional HEE approval before local approval can be given. You should get approval from your TPD for this prior to applying for the study leave and send this approval to the ESL email address ekhuft.esl@nhs.net so that your application can be progressed.
Please inform your Medical Education administrator via ekhuft.esl@nhs.net if you are awaiting TPD approval so that your study leave application can be held until conformation of HEE approval through your TPD.
All International Study Leave is considered to be 'Discretional' request, and needs to be approved by HEE through your TPD before being booked. HEE will advise of which costs they will accept, if approved.
All enquires should go to ekhuft.esl@nhs.net
Training doctors based in a hospital
Training doctors based in a hospital (F1, F2, ST1-8, CT1-3, IMT1-3, DCT, GPST) should follow the online study leave process.
This can only be accessed when connected to the East Kent Hospitals IT network or using the remote-working VPN on a Trust device.
Online study leave application formTraining doctors based in a GP surgery or psychiatry placement
For any training doctors based in a GP surgery or psychiatry placement, the paper-based process or online process can be followed.
Online study leave application form Download the paper study leave application formAfter submitting your application
You will receive regular reminders, information and updates via SMS to your phone from your Study Leave team.
If you applied for study leave online, you can check the progress of your form on the IT Portal – go to My Forms.
FAQs
You can read the PGME guidance and Health Education England's guidance on study leave, which includes approved specialty curriculum course information and codes.
'Discretional' study leave (previously 'aspirational' study leave) covers anything not on the HELaSE Codes list, and all international events.
Applying for 'discretional' study leave requires a special code.
Anything outside of the 'mandatory' or 'optional' codes needs to be approved as 'discretional'
To apply for 'discretional', you will need to follow another route rather than the usual Study Leave route, please see the guide provided above. This also applies to all International Study Leave and is limited to one request per training programme, the funding for this may also limited.
When applying for 'discretional' study leave complete the request, by following the guide above, at least 10 weeks in advance, to allow time for your application to be processed.
If your 'discretional' request is granted, you will be given a unique 'Discretional Study Leave' code. You will need to forward this to your Trainee Study Leave Co‑ordinator when received.
All study leave expenses must be claimed on the Easy Expense system.
All study leave expenses claims must be submitted within 1 month after attending the study leave event, or immediately after if leaving the Trust. This reduces the risk of any delays or possible rejection. Once you have left the Trust you will not be able to submit or amend a claim and will not be reimbursed.