This term's progress reviews are now available for completion on ECT Manager, with a due date of 5 December. The eagle-eyed among you will have noticed that this is well before the actual end of term, and may be wondering how you account for anything that happens in the final ten days of term.

We open and close reporting well before the end of term for several reasons: to allow induction tutors plenty of time to observe their ECT(s) and write the report(s); to allow ECTs time to read the report and add their comments; and to allow the AB to review upwards of 350 reports and either approve them or return them to the school for further comment. However, this gives rise to a potential issue: if the ECT becomes ill and misses school between the report being submitted and the end of term, this absence may disappear from their induction records.

This matters, because a cumulative absence of 30 days or more in a year means that an extension to induction must be applied. This extension is not automatically added to the very end of the induction period: it is added to the end of the year in which the absences occurred. This is important to remember, because if an ECT's absence extension is added to year one of their induction, they must retain their year one entitlements – including the 10% reduced timetable – into the first term of the next academic year.

As an aside: if an ECT has an extended absence and a phased return is agreed, the phased return days are also counted as absence for the purposes of induction. The ECT is only considered to have returned to work from an absence once full contractual duties and hours are resumed.

Therefore, we ask induction tutors to note the date on which they write their review, and start the clock on the next review period on that day rather than the first day of the next term. 

This way, every day of induction served counts for the ECT and nothing will be missed. We hope this helps!