# SABBATICAL AND EXTENDED LEAVE POLICY
Date: 1 February 2030
Parties: Northmoor Analytics Limited and its employees
## 1. Employee, employer and notice
Northmoor applies this policy to permanent employees with at least five years' continuous employment. It covers sabbaticals for study, caring, travel, community work or another substantial personal purpose; it creates no automatic contractual right and does not replace annual leave.
## 2. Leave or policy entitlement
An eligible employee may request four weeks to three months, normally once in five years. The written request is due at least three months before start and states purpose, dates, contact and handover. Probationary, notice-period or active performance cases may be refused for a reasoned operational or fairness reason.
## 3. Pay, service and working arrangements
Sabbatical is unpaid. Employment and continuous service continue, but salary, bonus, holiday accrual and pension contributions pause except where law or scheme rules require otherwise. Benefits continue only where the provider permits and the employee pays notified costs; tax and immigration effects must be checked.
## 4. Health, safety and equality
The manager assesses cover, customer risk, equality impact and return consistently with comparable requests. Approval may include reasonable conditions, a maximum or review. It must not be withheld for a discriminatory reason; disability-related requests are considered with the Equality Act 2010 duty.
## 5. Records, review and return
Before leave, the employee returns equipment, protects confidential information, completes handover and confirms contact. Contact is limited to agreed welfare or urgent matters; KIT days are optional and separately agreed, not hidden work. Competing work and breach of existing duties remain prohibited.
## 6. Statutory rights and reservations
The employee is expected to return to the same role where available or an equivalent role; this does not guarantee a role after genuine redundancy or other lawful change. Four weeks' notice is expected for early return or resignation. Unpaid leave has no repayment, but unauthorised absence may be managed.
## 7. England and Wales law and acknowledgement
This is guidance unless incorporated into a contract, may be amended after consultation and cannot reduce statutory family, sickness, equality, holiday or employment rights. Questions go to HR and disputes use grievance procedure. England and Wales law applies; Helen Ward acknowledges publication on 1 February 2030.