Stewardship
An employee must:
- use any public funds entrusted to or handled by them responsibly and lawfully
- not make personal use of our property or facilities unless properly authorised to do so
Financial management
We acknowledge the responsibility we have for the administration of:
- our own funds
- public funds
- funds under the control of employees
We emphasise both to the public and employees the importance we place upon probity, financial control and honest administration. We will keep our arrangements for the prevention and detection of fraud and corruption under constant review. We will pursue all suspected irregularities and take appropriate action.
Where an employee has direct responsibility for financial transactions, they must comply with our financial regulations. For example, when ordering goods and services on our behalf.
If we find that an employee has committed any act of fraud or theft, we will regard this as gross misconduct. They may face dismissal. We may involve the police to decide whether to instigate a criminal investigation.
Patent
Employees must disclose to their manager any matter, item or idea capable of being patented. This applies whether developed or discovered by the employee, alone or with colleagues, in the course of their duties. Subject to provisions of the Patents Act it will belong to us.
We will decide whether to apply for a patent or other protection in law for any invention, which belongs to us under the Patents Act.
Copyright
All records, documents and other papers which are compiled or acquired by an employee relating to finance and administration in the course of their employment are and will remain our property. The copyright in all such cases belongs exclusively to us.
In the case of academic work, such as projects undertaken as part of a course to further an employee's professional career, the copyright will belong to the employee. This includes books, contributions to books, articles and conference papers.
Care and use of our resources
Employees must treat all our equipment with due care and respect.
They may not use our resources for anything other than for the proper advancement of our business. This includes materials, equipment and cash, or business information such as trade secrets. If an employee wishes to use our equipment for other business, they must have permission from their manager in advance.
Security and use of computer data or equipment
Employees must adequately secure data and systems against risks such as:
- operator errors
- theft of equipment
- unauthorised access to or copying of programmes
- use of unauthorised software on our machines, and
- natural hazards such as fire, flood and power failures
Employees must comply with relevant data protection legislation at all times. Employees must adhere to information assurance policies and guidelines.
Employees must ensure that no unauthorised person gains access to equipment or data under their control. No data should be released unless approved and conforms with data protection legislation. Employees must not disclose user IDs and passwords to anyone. Passwords must be changed regularly to a previously unused password.
Misuse and time-wasting on email are unacceptable. Personal messages must be kept to a minimum. Employees must not use email to undertake personal business for monetary gain.
We do not condone the sending of defamatory email messages. If an employee does this, they will be subject to our disciplinary policy.
The tone and content of all messages must be appropriate and consistent with our communication guidelines. The email policy within the corporate information security policy has further guidance.
Personal use of the internet, including social media, is permitted provided that you comply with:
- internet and intranet policy contained in the corporate information security policy
- social media policy
- social media and mobile devices in employment policy
You use must not:
- impact upon an employee's work
- interfere with the performance of an employee's work
- interfere with other employees doing their work
There will be no access to sites which have a terrorist, offensive, sexual or game playing or gambling content. We monitor access to the internet regularly. Anyone found accessing or attempting to access such sites will be subject to disciplinary proceedings.