Skip to main content
Sign in

Administering a Roster Period

  • Updated

Purpose

There are several actions that you can complete within the Roster Period tab of NHS At Work, including assigning medics to the shift pattern and completing bulk actions against the roster. This guide supports users in managing the Roster Period and includes the sections below. 

Please also see the ‘Introduction to the Roster Period Screen’ guide for a high-level overview.

 

 

Navigating to a Roster Period

  1. Navigate to your roster, and select the ‘Roster Periods’ tab.
  2. Choose the desired roster period from the sub-set of tabs.

 

 

Slot Allocating Medics

Medics are allocated to rosters via the combination of the Rota Code and Effective Dates within their profile. This information can be added or updated in the profile either via the import process or manually from the Staff List. For more guidance on these processes, refer to ‘The Medic Import Process’ guide or ‘Assigning a Rota Code’ guide.

  1. Medics available to be allocated within the roster period you’re viewing will appear on the left-hand side of the Roster Period screen with their start/end dates. Drag a medic from the list and drop them onto the desired slot.

Top Tip! There is an indicator in the medic list to identify Less Than Full Time (LTFT) workers.

Top Tip! To support decision making in which slot may be best to assign a medic to, click on the Rota Action Menu ellipsis and open the ‘Dynamic View’. Here you can see which shifts a medic would be assigned on any given date, depending on their slot.

  1. Once assigned to a slot, the medic will appear in the line that they were dragged onto.
  • An indicator will appear in the ‘Slot’ column to show how many medics are allocated to this slot.
  • An additional ‘blue line’ will appear beneath the shift pattern, showing the medic’s name, Full Time (FT) or Less Than Full Time (LTFT) Status, and Start and End Date for this Roster Period.

 


Adding Vacancies

If your roster does not have the required coverage, or is a combined FT and LTFT roster, leaving some shifts uncovered, you can use the ‘Add Vacancy’ or ‘Auto Generate Vacancies’ features to create vacant shifts.

If you have a Full Time slot vacancy:

  1. Click the ‘Add Vacancy’ button, on the left-hand side of the page.
  2. Then complete the ‘Add Vacancy’ form and click save.

If you wish to create vacant shifts for shifts that are present within the Full Time equivalent, but not captured within the LTFT Working Pattern:

  1. Click ‘Auto Generate Vacancies’ button.
  2. Then select ‘Generate’.

Once created, the vacant shifts will appear on the roster and can be outsourced to TempRE to be advertised for Bank or Agency coverage.

 

 

Splitting Shifts on a Roster Period

Splitting a shift is used to record a breakdown of the different duties assigned to medics during their shift. Where these duties are a recurring commitment, splitting the shift within the Roster Period allows managers to record this detail for all shifts in that position on the pattern throughout the roster period.

  1. Within the Roster Period, click the Roster Period Action Menu ellipsis, and select ‘Split Shift’.
  2. Tick the box on all shifts that you wish to assign the same breakdown to. E.g. in the example below, the system will assign the same breakdown to all Monday shifts in Slot 1, and all Tuesday shifts from Slot 4.
  3. Once selected click the ‘Split Shift’ button to open the ‘Add Split Shift’ form.

Top Tip! If selecting multiple shifts, you must only select identical shift types.

  1. Complete the ‘Add Split Shift’ form with the required breakdown.

Top Tip! Time periods can be updated in 5-minute increments, must be continuous, and must capture the entire shift duration.

  1. Click ‘Save’ to finalise, this will add the Splits as detailed across all relevant shifts on the Roster.

 

Version 1.0 - Approved 22/12/2025

 

Related articles