How to manage leave requests

When a worker requests leave, it arrives here for a decision. Nothing is confirmed until you act on it, so this screen is where you balance what your workers need against the shifts you have to cover.

Before you begin

You will need a user access level that allows you to approve leave.
Check the worker's remaining balance and the dates requested before deciding. A request that takes a worker over their allowance is worth a conversation first.
If you reject a request you will need to give a reason, so have your thinking clear.

Finding your leave requests

Select Leaves in the left-hand menu.
Choose Leave Requests.

The list opens showing requests awaiting a decision. Use the status dropdown to switch between:

Pending — waiting for your decision
Approved — agreed and confirmed
Rejected — declined
Cancelled — cancelled after being approved

Search by employee ID or name to find a particular worker, and select RESET FILTERS to return to the default view.

The Upcoming Holidays panel on the right lists the bank holidays and special holidays for the year, which is useful context when a request falls near one.

Reading a request

Each row shows:

Employee — the worker's name and reference number
Start Date and End Date — the period requested
Leave Type — the type, and whether it is paid or unpaid
Reason — select the eye icon to see the reason given
Status — where the request has reached
Created On — when the request was submitted
Action — the decision available to you

Selecting the eye icon opens the Leave Reason window, showing the worker's stated reason along with View Document if they have attached anything, such as a fit note.

Reviewing a request in full

Select the request to open Leave History.

The Leave Breakdown lists every date in the request, with the hours covered, the number of days and the availability recorded for each — for example Full day (1D). This matters when a request spans a fortnight but only some days are full days.

Underneath you will find the leave type, whether it is paid or unpaid, the reason given and View Document for any attachment.

You can approve or reject the request from this panel using APPROVE LEAVE or REJECT LEAVE.

Tip: Open the breakdown rather than relying on the start and end dates alone. A request from the 12th to the 26th does not necessarily mean ten working days off.

Approving a request

Select APPROVE on the request's row, or APPROVE LEAVE from the Leave History panel.
A confirmation message explains that approving will notify the worker and update their leave records.
Select APPROVE to confirm.

The status changes to Approved, the worker is notified, and where the leave is paid, their balance is updated.

Rejecting a request

Select REJECT LEAVE.
Choose a reason from Select reason. This is required — the REJECT button stays unavailable until you have chosen one.
Add a Description giving any further detail. It is worth completing, as it becomes the record of why the request was declined.
Select REJECT.

The status changes to Rejected and the worker's balance is unaffected.

Tip: Where you are rejecting because of shift cover rather than entitlement, say so in the description and suggest alternative dates. It turns a refusal into a conversation.

Cancelling approved leave

Plans change. Filter the list by Approved and you will see a CANCEL option against each request.

Select CANCEL on the relevant row to cancel leave that has already been approved. The request moves to Cancelled.

If something looks wrong

If a request does not appear, check the status filter — it may already have been approved or rejected by a colleague.

If a request shows the wrong dates or the wrong leave type, ask the worker to submit a corrected request rather than approving the incorrect one.

If a balance does not update after you approve leave, or a request cannot be actioned at all, please contact our Support Team with the worker's reference number and the dates requested.