Introduction

As a council we are aiming to reduce the amount of journeys our staff take. This is because it:

• saves money which helps to protect services and jobs
• is better for the environment.

However sometimes there is a justifiable reason for you to travel. In these circumstances, you can request for your travel and hotel expenses to be covered by the council and booked for you in advance.

Travel and expenses policy and procedure

The travel and expenses policy and procedure aims to make sure you have a clear and consistent understanding of your roles and responsibilities when claiming or authorising travel and mileage expenses.

The procedure will help you understand:

• how to make a claim if you're eligible for mileage and travel expenses while doing your job
• whether you qualify for a business car user allowance
• how to book accommodation or travel abroad
• the rates you can claim for allowances and reimbursements.

Download the policy and procedure

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Justifiable reasons for travel

Before you decide to travel, you must consider if the reason for your travel is justified.

Your travel will only be justified if the reason for the journey:

• cannot be achieved by an alternative method, such as eLearning, a phone call, Teams meeting, or training via a virtual classroom
• will lead to skill or work improvements that will benefit service delivery
• is cost effective and efficient.

Keeping down travel costs

To help us tackle our budget shortfall, we're asking you to keep your travel costs to a minimum. Where possible, you should travel together if you are making the same business journey as another colleague.

Check all the options available to you when planning your journey so you can make sure you use the cheapest or most efficient mode of travel.

This is nearly always public transport, particularly for journeys between city centres. It is generally cheaper, safer, and results in lower carbon emissions.

However public transport may not be suitable if the journey would cost more in terms of staff time than using another method of transport, when compared to the saving on actual journey costs.