NHS length of service query please.

[PhilCollinsFingerWag]

Hi, please could somebody help me with a query about NHS service.

I work for the NHS, almost fifteen years in.

If I left the NHS (not retired) then rejoined within five years, would my length of service still be intact ? I thought I heard something like that, or is it only for people that retired, then went back?
Any help appreciated, thank you.

You need to check the NHS Employers website, about current T&Cs for continuity of service for the exact amount of time you can have between posts without it affecting your CoS. But no, you can't have 5 years between roles and keep your CoS, it would start again.

Thanks @lettersbyowl. Not sure what they meant then.

Sorry I meant, somebody was talking about this the other day, must have misheard.

There are some pension protections that you still get if you rejoin within 5 years so it may have been that that you overheard.

In my health board, any break in service (even a week) means you go back to the start of the increment and loose any extra holidays etc

Ah right @ChessieFL, that might have been it then, thank you.

@IwillrunIwillfly, thanks.

I thought it sounded too good to be true ...😁

I don't know the answer to your question, unfortunately, but I think that continuous service isn't the same as length of service, according to the NHS. Then there's also reckonable service.....

I left one NHS org and went to another, and my leaving date had to be the Sunday not Friday to ensure I had continuous service

@KedsAndTubeSocks, I think I’ll read up tomorrow.

Thanks all 💐.

Google the AfC handbook - section 12. It clearly explains what you would be entitled to if you had a break in service and then returned to the NHS. It all depends on how long your break is

In my trust it counts if it’s under 3 months.

@Theromanempire, I’ll write that down so I know where to look, thanks.

Hi,

No it would not stay intact

You would not have continuity of service for the purposes of redundancy, maternity leave, sick pay etc. However your previous service will count towards annual leave, if that helps?