Tailored Adjustment Plans (TAP)
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Purpose and benefits of having a Tailored Adjustment Plan (TAP) in place, how to complete and review a TAP, resources to support employees and managers |
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Reference to the Procedure |
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A Tailored Adjustment Plan (TAP) is a living record of support or adjustments, agreed between an employee and their line manager, to support a disabled employee at work. A TAP provides a structure for an employee to share information relating to their disability (to reduce the need for repeated conversations) and to support open conversations with their manager about the support they need. This allows adjustments to be made in a timely manner and reviewed as needed.
Reasonable adjustments (also known as workplace adjustments) support disabled employees in their role at the University by removing or reducing barriers which may be preventing them from working to their full potential.
Download a copy of the TAP template: Tailored Adjustment Plan (TAP)
The purpose of a TAP is to:
- Provide a place for an employee to share information about or related to their disability, to help avoid repeated conversations.
- Provide a structure for reviewing and updating information about workplace support and any reasonable adjustments.
- Ensure that the employee and their line manager have a record of adjustments that have been agreed.
- Increase employee awareness of the support that is available to them and explore this.
- Facilitate a conversation when an employee changes jobs or is assigned a new manager.
- Provide clarity when an employee is unwell and may need additional support due to their disability. This particularly applies to employees with fluctuating or progressive conditions.
A TAP allows an employee the opportunity to:
- Explain the barriers or challenges they face either within or outside of work (which interact with their work) due to their disability.
- Suggest adjustments or support they might need to remove or reduce these barriers to make it easier to carry out their role.
- Offer further information from their doctor, specialist, or other expert.
- Explain any change in their personal circumstances.
- Consider whether a referral to Occupational Health may be beneficial.
- Be reassured that their manager understands what additional support may be needed if they become unwell related to their disability.
- Be reassured that they should not need to repeatedly explain their condition and/or impacts of this at work or previously agreed adjustments.
A TAP allows a manager the opportunity to:
- Understand the the barriers or challenges an employee faces either within or outside of work (which interact with their work) due to their disability.
- Discuss and implement reasonable adjustments to help remove or reduce these barriers.
- Understand what additional support may be needed if an employee becomes unwell related to their disability.
- Consider whether it would be beneficial to refer the employee to Occupational Health (with employee consent) to help understand what adjustments or further support may help.
- Have a toolkit in place to allow regular reviews and a space to encourage open conversation with an employee.
- Regularly review the effectiveness of the adjustments already agreed, both for the employee and the Faculty/Service area.
- Explain any organisational changes which may impact on the employee’s role.
Normally it would be for an employee to speak to their line manager to make them aware that workplace adjustments would be beneficial to them. This may be raised prior to or at the beginning of their employment with the University, or it may come up during their employment should they develop a disability and/or find over time that there may be barriers preventing them working to their full potential. When a line manager becomes aware that an employee has a disability, the manager should offer to initiate a TAP as part of ongoing support.
As a line manager, it would be good practice to make employees aware of how they can declare if they have a disability and request a conversation to initiate a TAP. Examples of where managers can help increase employee awareness may include during new starter inductions, regular team communications or via the Performance Development Review (PDR) process.
A TAP is a dynamic document that is intended to be reviewed and updated at regular intervals as appropriate and with the agreement of the employee and their line manager:
- During regular one-to-one meetings as needed.
- At a return-to-work meeting following a period of sickness absence if needed.
- At a Performance Development Review (PDR)
- Before a change of role, change of duties, or new ways of working.
As a guide we recommend a review takes place every 6 months, or sooner if there have been any changes. A review can be initiated by the employee or the line manager.
Employees and managers can reach out to the HR Advisor team for further advice and guidance related to initiating or reviewing an ongoing TAP and reasonable adjustments. Advice from Occupational Health or other third parties (for example, Access to Work) may be requested before changes can be agreed and implemented.
It is important to note that completion of a TAP is voluntary and the legal duty to make reasonable adjustments for a disabled employee will apply with or without a TAP.
Employees and managers may find the following resources useful to support with implementing and reviewing a TAP:
Occupational Health – reasonable adjustments
Occupational Health - mental and physical disability support