Application Process 

 Overview 

• The application process for study leave is led by the employing trust of the Resident Doctor. 

• As described in the Roles and Responsibilities section it is the requirement of the Resident Doctor to follow these processes.  

• This section describes an overview of the application process for the Trusts that fall within NHSE SW's remit. 

• Click here to see an Overview of the UK Study Leave Application Process

 Application Process 

• As described in the Overview of Guidance Page, all applications must be prospective. For clarity, submitted prior to the course taking place and in an ideal world, also approved as there may be times when applications are not approved and the Resident Doctor must bourne the cost of the activity. 

• There are two main application processes within the South West.  

  • Paper Forms 

  • Accent 

• If unsure of the application process for your Trust, please email them. 

 PGME Contact Details 

 Back to the Top

Funding Arrangements 

The study leave budget has been held centrally with NHSE SW since 1 April 2018. 

 There is a finite budget for each region to support the fundamental principle of study leave. The main use of the study leave budget is for educational purposes to gain the competences defined in each curriculum. 

Examples of funding arrangements include: 

• Regional Study days. 

• Other regionally commissioned internal courses which meet curriculum requirements, such as the Professional and Generic Skills courses (travel costs only and in some instances overnight accommodation). 

• Courses which are explicitly required by the relevant curriculum and on the course list. 

• Courses which are a cost-effective way of delivering parts of the relevant curriculum. 

• Life support courses (e.g. ALS, ATLS, APLS) when these are curriculum requirements. 

• Other training, which is not required by the curriculum, but has been agreed in the Resident Doctors PDP and is on the course list (Resident Doctors may be required to contribute towards these courses). 

• Other individual training needs which support career progression and have been agreed in the Resident Doctors PDP and are on the course list (Resident Doctors may be required to contribute towards these courses). Please refer to the application flowchart to ensure timeframes for applications are adhered to.  

• Any mandatory/statutory training courses should be funded locally by the employing Trust. 

• Refresher life support courses that are employment requirements and not curriculum requirements, should be supported by the Trust. 

  Back to the Top

Funding for External Courses 

In order to expedite the approval process and remove additional administrative burden on everyone within the approval chain, courses on the course list have been chosen by the TPD's and HoS's and have been allocated into one of the three categories for the eligibility of the amount of funding that can be approved following the Trust's application process. 

Key information 

• The course must be on the course list.  

• Any courses not named on the course list at the start of the academic year will not be fully funded. Please see Category 3 in the in-depth section above for more information. 

• Any course over £1000 on the course list requires NHSE SW study leave team to approve prior to approval by the Trust. The request for approval should be sent to NHSE SW study leave team by the employing Trust ONLY. HoS/TPD's are unable to grant approval for these courses. 

• All activity will need to be allocated to study leave time. The Trust will be unable to reimburse the Resident Doctor for any study leave time that is not allocated to the activity. 

• It is the responsibility of the employing Trust to manage any requests for retrospective claims. NHSE SW are unable to support retrospective claims under any circumstances. 

• Submission and/or TPD approval does not automatically ensure reimbursement.

Non-Categorised Courses 

There are some courses whereby categories do not apply and have separate funding arrangements as detailed in the study leave guidance. 

These courses are listed below with more detail found on the Course Information and Overseas pages: 

 Back to the Top 

Early Reimbursement

Overview

• From February 2026, Resident Doctor’s will be able to access early reimbursement for course related costs when held within the UK.

• As a result, Resident Doctor’s will be able to claim early reimbursement for course/conference costs, accommodation, and travel, provided that they have followed the processes within this guidance and have provided receipts.

• Travel via car or subsistence claims will still need to be submitted separately after the course/conference, requiring receipts where applicable.

• There is a high expectation of financial probity within the GMC Good Medical Practice which includes “act with honesty and integrity” within the standards for all doctors.

Early Reimbursement Frequently Asked Questions

 Back to the Top 

Approvals Required 

 Overview 

• When applying for Study Leave, certain approvals are required. Below are two tables which outline the required approvals for each Category of course. 

Under £1000 

*Training Programme Director approval is required for Category 3 courses under £1000 that are not on the course list. 

Over £1000 

*Training Programme Director or Head of School endorsement is required for Category 3 courses over £1000 

 Back to the Top