1. Purpose

1.1. This document sets out the University’s policy on expenditure and reimbursement of travel, subsistence, entertaining and other expenses incurred in the course of the University’s business.

1.2. This document also provides guidance to enable such activity to comply with relevant legal and financial regulations.

1.3. The University has engaged Travel Management Company Clarity to provide a travel booking service through an online tool or via a contact centre.

2. Scope

2.1. This policy applies to all categories of expenditure on travel, subsistence and entertaining using University administered funds regardless of method of payment.

2.2. This policy applies to all staff and students, and any other person undertaking a University activity.

2.3. This policy does not relate to the purchase of goods and services. The University’s Procurement Policy applies in this case.

2.4. All rates stated within this policy are inclusive of VAT.

2.5. The additional cost of any unapproved upgrade to the rates/standards stated within this policy will not be reimbursed by the University.

2.6. The University will not pay for any travel expenses between the home or other agreed remote working location of a member of staff and the University of Bath premises or vice-versa where they are working under a hybrid, homeworking or largely remote working arrangement.

3. General principles

3.1. Economy and reasonableness

• The general principles of reasonableness and economy combined with efficient working practices underlie the operation of these rules.
• All travel and subsistence costs should be approved in advance where possible.
  

3.2. Environmental

3.2.1. This policy also supports delivering the University’s Environmental Policy and our commitment to the Climate Action Framework Principles. Carbon emissions associated with the way we travel for business and the products we buy account for more than 75% of our overall carbon footprint, and we have committed to at least cutting this by half by 2030.

When planning to travel, consideration must be given to the carbon impact of potential travel options prior to booking. Choosing lower carbon travel options does not necessarily cost more or take more time.

The carbon impact associated with travel should be considered with equal weighting when deciding the method of travel, with the lowest carbon method being the default choice.

3.2.2. This travel hierarchy table gives an overview of the carbon efficiency of different modes of transport.

Emissions from different modes of transport per passenger per kilometre*

*Source BEIS/Defra Greenhouse Gas Conversion Factors 2022. Car refers to an average diesel car. All values include Well-to-Tank emissions. Domestic rail is based upon a UK average of diesel & electric trains. For the purposes of booking, train journeys that are predominantly on the electrified network can be viewed as being equivalent to coach journeys in CO2 terms.

• Overall, the lowest carbon option is not to travel – consider whether you could use phone, email, or a virtual meeting instead.
  
• Could arrangements be changed to minimise the number of journeys, combining this journey with another meeting, or starting the journey from home?
• Where travel is necessary, consider walking or cycling first, followed by public transport.
• Trains are preferable for longer journeys but where driving is considered the only practical option, consider car-sharing.
• Flying should be the choice of last resort for destinations within England, Wales and Scotland (except north of Glasgow and Edinburgh) and the area serviced by Eurostar, unless such travel is not practical due to constraints which are approved by a line manager / research supervisory team.
• The least carbon-emitting method should be used subject to the principle of economy and reasonableness where it is practical to do so, even where costs may be higher. In practice, this means that in many cases, land-based travel rather than flying is the default option.
• If travel is being funded through a research grant, consider whether your original proposal could contain low/ zero travel price and full travel price options to give funders the opportunity to fund lower-carbon projects?
• All air travel and UK rail must be booked using the University’s travel management company to ensure that carbon emissions can be recorded. This will not be mandated where the travel management company is not meeting its obligations under its Service Level Agreement.
  

3.3. Equality

• The University has a duty of care under the Equality Act 2010 to provide reasonable adjustments for travellers. Reasonable adjustments may also be considered for those who do not fall under the Act but have an occupational health need, or caring responsibilities or similar. These will form part of the exception policy outlined in 5.5 below.
  

3.4. Health & Safety and Wellbeing

• This policy is considerate of the need to ensure that the well-being of staff and students required to travel for the performance of University business is maintained.
• The University has a Safety Standard that applies to all travel beyond campus. This provides the requirements for:
  • Fieldwork Risk Assessments. (Fieldwork includes activities such as undertaking social science interviews and research in urban areas, attendance at conferences and visits to institutions, as well as activities more traditionally associated with the term, such as survey or collection work carried out in more remote areas, and teaching groups of students in locations away from the university.)
  • Vulnerable people
  • Overseas Travel
  • Emergencies
  • Insurance
  • Information, Instruction and Training
    

3.5. Strategy

• This policy is designed to support the core objectives of the University Strategy and other relevant University strategies such as the Internationalisation Strategy and the 11 principles of the University of Bath Climate Action Framework including:
  • Being Net Zero Carbon in its Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2030
  • A 50% reduction in its Scope 3 emissions by 2030
  • Being Net Zero Carbon in its Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions by 2040
    

4. Process

4.1. Advances

• A system of providing advance allowances exists where there is a requirement for payment by an individual where no other suitable payment method is available.
• Advances will not be given for amounts less than £100.
• Where an advance is obtained, records must be kept of all expenditure incurred and an expense claim (see 4.2) should be submitted to clear it within 28 days of the employee’s return.
• Further advances will not be made where a previous advance remains overdue.
• Advances can be requested online through Agresso.
• Instructions on requesting an advance on Agresso.

4.2. Expense claims

• For members of staff and postgraduate students expense claims are processed online through Agresso.
• See instructions on how to process a claim on Agresso.
• For any other person making a claim for expenditure incurred whilst undertaking a University activity this claim form should be used.
• Expense claims that are over six months after the date that the expense was incurred will not normally be accepted except where exceptional circumstances can be justified.

4.3. Receipts

• All claims for reimbursement of expenses must be supported by scanned or photo images of receipts, vouchers or equivalent evidence of the expense incurred. Original items must be retained in case of query/audit.
• The University recognises that on occasions receipts may be lost or not be provided by the vendor. Claims can still be submitted in this instance:
  • For items over £10, a written justification should be provided and approval from the Head of Department, or their nominated delegate, and should be attached to the claim. (The principle in 5.3 also applies here).
  • For items under £10, an explanation does not need to be given but items without receipts must be identified on the claim. However, please be aware that some funders require receipts for all items of expenditure regardless of value; in this circumstance, receipts must be submitted for all items.
• The receipts should include itemised details of the item/s bought and VAT breakdown and should show proof of payment. For receipts that are illegible, or not written in English, please provide a clear description of the expenditure on the back of the receipt. Credit card holder receipts and copies of credit card or bank statements do not include this information and so cannot be solely accepted as receipts to support a claim.
• In the case of claiming back the cost of airline tickets via expenses, the airline booking confirmation (or equivalent) itemising the payment details can be provided as evidence of the expenditure.

4.4. Booking travel

• Instructions on how to book travel via Clarity
  

5. Compliance/exceptions

5.1. The claimant is responsible for ensuring that all claims submitted adhere to this Policy.

5.2. The Head of Department, or those with delegated authority to manage the associated budget, is responsible for ensuring that all expense claims submitted to the Finance Office for payment represent a valid business expense in accordance with this Policy.

5.3. Where a claim is submitted by a Head of Department or responsible budget holder, or a member of staff with equal or greater seniority, the respective line manager will be responsible for ensuring the claim represents a valid business expense in accordance with this Policy. Claims submitted by the Vice Chancellor will be approved by the Chair of Council.

5.4. Where the Finance Office receives a claim that does not adhere to this Policy, including insufficient supporting paperwork, it will conduct enquiries to rectify the situation and reject where it is found to be non-compliant.

5.5. If a traveller feels that they are unable to make their travel arrangements within the constraints of this policy, e.g. reasons such as caring responsibilities, welfare or temporary health impairments, they must get written approval from their Dean / respective member of University Executive Board prior to making any bookings and this will be added to the annual exception report. The Travel Management Company may request a copy of this approval to complete the booking. Approval is not necessary to accommodate individual needs associated with disability and accessibility.

5.6. A report detailing instances of exceptions from this policy will be made available to the University Executive Board on a regular basis.

6. Details of allowable and non-allowable costs on expenses claims

6.1. Travel by vehicle

6.2. Travel (other)

6.3. UK Rail/underground

6.4. Air travel

6.5. Other travel costs

6.6. Accommodation

6.7. Food, drink, and entertaining costs

6.8. Miscellaneous

Version information

Owner: Tony Brett Version number: 1.00 Approval date: January 2022 Approved by: UEB Date of last review: 2022