Joint Education Services Circular (JESC) NO. 223
Trainee Educational Psychologists: contractual and statutory entitlements
This circular sets out advice about the contractual and statutory entitlements and pay and conditions of Trainee Educational Psychologists during their training scheme.
It should be read in conjunction with JESC 173 (Feb, 2010), JESC 186 (Feb, 2013), and paragraphs 4.14 to 4.18 of the Soulbury Report which sets out the terms of the Soulbury Committee’s agreement on pay and conditions for Trainee Educational Psychologists in full.
Trainee Educational Psychologists in year one of the training period are students and do not have the status of “employees”. During this period they are not entitled to membership of an occupational pension scheme, benefits under occupational sickness or maternity schemes, annual leave or any other contractual or statutory rights available to employees.
The agreement on pay and conditions for Trainee Educational Psychologists in years two and three are that instead of receipt of a Bursary, these trainees should be employed under contracts of employment. Where this is the case, trainees will have access to membership of the Local Government Pension Scheme and should be employed on terms not less favourable than those for other local government employees of the authority. This will mean that they will be entitled to annual leave, benefits under occupational sickness and maternity schemes and other contractual or statutory rights available to such employees, such as comparable car user status and allowances.