Unless in the course of a hearing, all communications between either party and the arbitrator shall be sent via the ACAS Arbitration Section.

Paragraph 169 below sets out the manner in which any document, notice or communication must be served on, or transmitted to, ACAS or the ACAS Arbitration Section.

This Scheme only applies to disputes involving proceedings, or claims which could be the subject of proceedings, before an employment tribunal arising out of a contravention, or alleged contravention, of section 80G(1) or section 80H(1)(b) of the 1996 Act.

The Scheme does not extend to other kinds of claim which may be related to, or raised at the same time as, a Flexible Working Claim. For example, sex discrimination cases are not covered by the Scheme.

If a Flexible Working Claim has been referred for resolution under the Scheme, any other claim, even if part of the same dispute, must be settled separately, or referred to the employment tribunal, or withdrawn. In the event that different aspects of the same dispute are being heard in the employment tribunal as well as under the Scheme, the arbitrator may decide, if appropriate or convenient, to postpone the arbitration proceedings pending a determination by the employment tribunal.

Because of its informal nature, the Scheme is not designed for disputes raising jurisdictional issues, such as for example:

• whether or not the claimant is an employee of the Employer;

• whether or not the Employee had the necessary period of continuous service to bring the claim;

• whether or not time limits have expired and/or should be extended.

Accordingly, when agreeing to refer a dispute to arbitration under the Scheme, both parties will be taken to have accepted as a condition of the Scheme that no jurisdictional issue is in dispute between them. The arbitrator will not therefore deal with such issues during the arbitration process, even if they are raised by the parties, and the parties will be taken to have waived any rights in that regard.

Where an agreement fails to satisfy any one of these requirements or where the parties are unable to agree whether the arbitration should be an English/Welsh arbitration or a Scottish arbitration, no valid reference to the Scheme will have been made, and the parties will have to settle their dispute by other means or have recourse to the employment tribunal.

All Arbitration Agreements must be notified to ACAS within two weeks of their conclusion, by either of the parties or their independent advisers or representatives, or an ACAS conciliator, sending a copy of the agreement and Waiver Forms, together with IT1 and IT3 forms if these have been completed, to the ACAS Arbitration Section.

For the purposes of the previous paragraph, an Arbitration Agreement is treated as “concluded” on the date it is signed, or if signed by different people at different times, on the date of the last signature.

Where an Arbitration Agreement is not notified to ACAS within two weeks, ACAS will not arrange for the appointment of an arbitrator under the Scheme, unless notification within that time was not reasonably practicable. Any party seeking to notify ACAS of an Arbitration Agreement outside this period must explain in writing to the ACAS Arbitration Section the reason for the delay. ACAS shall appoint an arbitrator, in accordance with the appointment provisions below, to consider the explanation, and that arbitrator may seek the views of the other party, and may call both parties to a hearing to establish the reasons for the delay. The arbitrator shall then rule in an award on whether or not the agreement can be accepted for hearing under the Scheme.

Any such hearing and award will be governed by the provisions of this Scheme.

Parties are free to reach an agreement settling the dispute at any stage.

An agreed award shall state that it is an award of the arbitrator by consent and shall have the same status and effect as any other award on the merits of the case.

If the agreement settling the dispute includes an agreement that one party (the “paying party”) shall pay a sum of money to the other (the “receiving party”) the arbitrator shall (unless the parties have agreed that the said agreement shall not be the subject of an award) draft an award ordering the paying party to pay the agreed sum to the receiving party together ( if the parties have agreed that interest shall run on the agreed sum) with interest thereon at such rate or rates as the parties may have agreed and from such date or dates as the parties may have agreed until payment. The arbitrator shall send a copy of the said award in draft to each party and invite each party to confirm that the draft award accurately reflects the agreement between them. Upon receiving confirmation to that effect the arbitrator shall issue an award in terms of the agreed draft.

Arbitral appointments are made exclusively by ACAS from the ACAS Arbitration Panel. Parties will have no choice of arbitrator.

Once ACAS has been notified of a valid Arbitration Agreement, it will select and appoint an arbitrator, and notify all parties of the name of the arbitrator so appointed.

Immediately following selection (and before an appointment is confirmed by ACAS), every arbitrator shall disclose in writing to ACAS (to be forwarded to the parties) any circumstances known to him or her likely to give rise to any justifiable doubts as to his or her impartiality, or confirm in writing that there are no such circumstances.

Once appointed, and until the arbitration is concluded, every arbitrator shall be under a continuing duty forthwith to disclose to ACAS (to be forwarded to the parties) any such circumstances which may have arisen since appointment.

An arbitrator in an English/Welsh arbitration may only be removed by ACAS or the court (under the provisions in paragraphs 47EW to 52EW below).

Applications under the Scheme to remove an arbitrator on any of the grounds set out in sections 24(1)(a) and (c) of the Arbitration Act 1996 or on the basis that such removal has been agreed by both parties, shall be made in the first instance to ACAS (addressed to the ACAS Arbitration Section).

At the same time as an application is made to ACAS to remove an arbitrator a copy of the application shall be sent to the other party to the arbitration and to the arbitrator.

ACAS shall, following receipt of an application under paragraph 47EW, give the other party to the arbitration and the arbitrator such opportunity as ACAS in its sole discretion may consider appropriate to comment on the application.

ACAS may, after such procedures as ACAS in its sole discretion may consider appropriate, remove the arbitrator.

If ACAS refuses an application made under paragraph 47EW, a party may thereafter apply to the court.

The arbitrator may continue the proceedings and make an award while an application to ACAS (as well as the court) to remove him or her is pending.

An arbitrator in a Scottish arbitration may be removed by ACAS under the provisions in paragraphs 55S-58S below.

An application under the Scheme to remove an arbitrator shall be made to ACAS (addressed to the ACAS Arbitration Section). At the same time as the application is sent to ACAS a copy of the application shall be sent to the other party to the arbitration and to the arbitrator.

ACAS shall, following receipt of an application under paragraph 55S, give the other party to the arbitration and the arbitrator such opportunity as ACAS in its sole discretion may consider appropriate to comment on the application.

A decision of ACAS made under paragraph 57S shall be final.

The arbitrator may continue the proceedings and make an award while an application to ACAS to remove him or her is pending.

Where an arbitrator ceases to hold office for any reason, he or she shall be replaced by ACAS in accordance with the appointment provisions above.

Once appointed, the replacement arbitrator shall determine whether and, if so, to what extent the previous proceedings should stand.

A hearing must be held in every case, notwithstanding any agreement between the parties to a purely written procedure.

Once an arbitrator has been appointed by ACAS, a hearing shall be arranged as soon as reasonably practicable by him or her, with the administrative assistance of the ACAS Arbitration Section.

The arbitrator shall decide the date and venue for the hearing, in so far as an agreement cannot be reached with all parties within 28 days of the initial notification to ACAS of the Arbitration Agreement.

The ACAS Arbitration Section shall contact all parties with details of the date and venue for the hearing.

Hearings may be held in any venue, provided that the hearing will only be held at the Employee’s workplace, or a similarly non-neutral venue, if all parties so agree.

Where premises have to be hired for a hearing, ACAS shall meet the reasonable costs of so doing.

Every party shall meet their own travelling expenses and those of their representatives and witnesses.

No loss of earnings are payable by ACAS to anyone involved in the arbitration. However, where an arbitrator upholds a Flexible Working Claim, he or she may include in the calculation of any compensation a sum to cover reasonable travelling expenses and loss of earnings incurred by the Employee personally in attending the hearing.

Any application for a postponement of, or a different venue for, an initial hearing must be made in writing, with reasons, to the arbitrator via the ACAS Arbitration Section within 14 days of the date of the letter notifying the hearing arrangements or, where this is not practicable, as soon as is reasonably practicable. Such applications will be determined by the arbitrator without an oral hearing after all parties have received a copy of the application and been given a reasonable opportunity to respond.

If the application is rejected, the initial hearing will be held on the original date and/or in the original venue.

This provision does not affect the arbitrator’s general discretion (set out below) with respect to postponements after an initial hearing has been fixed, or with respect to other aspects of the procedure. In particular, procedural applications may be made to the arbitrator at the hearing itself.

Written statements of case should briefly set out the main particulars of each party’s case, which can then be expanded upon if necessary at the hearing itself. The statement should include an explanation of the events which led to the Flexible Working Claim being brought including an account of the outcome of any relevant meetings.

The parties must also supply details of any relevant awards of compensation that may have been made by any other tribunal or court in connection with the subject matter of the claim.

Legible copies of documents must be supplied to ACAS even if they have already been supplied to an ACAS conciliator before the Arbitration Agreement was concluded.

No information on the conciliation process, if any, shall be disclosed by an ACAS conciliator to the arbitrator.

Written statements of case and documentary or other material that have not been provided to the ACAS Arbitration Section prior to the hearing (in accordance with paragraph 83 above) may only be relied upon at the hearing with the arbitrator’s permission.

All representatives and witnesses who have been listed as accompanying a party at the hearing should be present at the start of the hearing. Witnesses who have not been included in a list submitted to the ACAS Arbitration Section prior to the hearing may only be called with the arbitrator’s permission.

Where the arbitrator believes that there may be considerable differences between the parties over any issue, including the availability or exchange of documents, or the availability of witnesses, the arbitrator may call the parties to a preliminary hearing to address such issues, or he or she may give procedural directions in correspondence.

In the course of a preliminary hearing or in correspondence, the arbitrator may express views on the desirability of information and/or evidence being available at the hearing.

In the case of the non-attendance of the Employee, if the arbitrator decides to adjourn the hearing, he or she may write to the Employee to request an explanation for the non-attendance. If the arbitrator decides that the Employee has not demonstrated sufficient cause for the non-attendance, he or she may rule in an award that the claim be treated as dismissed.

The arbitrator shall have the power, on the application of any party or of his or her own motion, to require the appointment of a legal adviser to assist with respect to any issue of EC law or the Human Rights Act 1998 or any devolution issue that, in the arbitrator’s view and subject to paragraph 18 above (Arbitrator’s Terms of Reference), might be involved and relevant to the resolution of the dispute.

The legal adviser will be appointed by ACAS, to report to the arbitrator and the parties, and shall be subject to the duty of disclosure set out in paragraphs 44 and 45 above.

The arbitrator shall allow the legal adviser to attend the proceedings, and may order an adjournment and/or change in venue to facilitate this.

The parties shall be given a reasonable opportunity to comment on any information, opinion or advice offered by the legal adviser, following which the arbitrator shall take such information, opinion or advice into account in determining the dispute.

The award in an English/Welsh arbitration shall be in writing, signed by the arbitrator.

In so far as any such correction or additional award involves a new issue that was not previously before the parties, this power shall not be exercised without first affording the parties a reasonable opportunity to make written representations to the arbitrator.

Any application by a party for the exercise of this power must be made via the ACAS Arbitration Section within 28 days of the date the award was despatched to the applying party by ACAS.

Any correction of the award shall be made within 28 days of the date the application was received by the arbitrator or, where the correction is made by the arbitrator on his or her own initiative, within 28 days of the date of the award.

Any additional award shall be made within 56 days of the date of the original award.

Any additional award in an English/Welsh arbitration shall so far as relevant comply with paragraphs 111EW, 112EW and 113EW.

Any correction of the award shall form part of the award.

Awards made by arbitrators under this Scheme are final and binding both on the parties and on any persons claiming through or under them.

This does not affect the right of a person to challenge an award under the provisions of the Arbitration Act 1996 as applied to this Scheme.

This does not affect the right of a person to challenge an award under Part XXIII below.

In a Scottish arbitration any award (including any additional award, any correction of an award or any variation to an award) requiring the payment of money may be registered for execution.

A party may lose the right to appeal under paragraph 139S in accordance with Part XXIV below.

Appeals under paragraph 139S are subject to the provisions of paragraphs 157S, 158S and 159S below.

The arbitrator may continue the arbitral proceedings and make a further award while an appeal to the Court under paragraph 139S is pending in relation to an award of the arbitrator as to his substantive jurisdiction.

A party to a Scottish arbitration may appeal to the Court of Session against an award in the proceedings on the ground of serious irregularity affecting the arbitrator, the proceedings or the award.

A party may lose the right to appeal under paragraph 146S above in accordance with section XXIV below.

Appeals under paragraph 146S are subject to the provisions of paragraphs 157S, 158S and 159S below.

An appeal under paragraphs 139S, 146S or 152S may not be brought if the appellant has not first exhausted any available recourse under Part XXI of the Scheme (Correction of Awards).

Sections 81(1)(c) and 81(2) of the Arbitration Act 199622 shall apply to English/Welsh arbitrations conducted in accordance with the Scheme.

Nothing in this Part of the Scheme shall be construed as excluding the operation of any rule of law as to the refusal of recognition or enforcement of an arbitral award in a Scottish arbitration on grounds of public policy.

Any notice or other document required or authorised to be given or served on ACAS or the ACAS Arbitration Section for the purposes of the arbitral proceedings shall be sent by pre-paid post to the address stipulated in the ACAS Guide to the Scheme.

• or transmitted by facsimile, addressed to the ACAS Arbitration Section, at the number stipulated in the ACAS Guide to the Scheme,

• or by electronic mail, at the address stipulated in the ACAS Guide to the Scheme.

Paragraph 169 does not apply to the service of documents on the ACAS Arbitration Section for the purposes of legal proceedings.

Any notice or other document required or authorised to be given or served on any person or entity (other than ACAS or the ACAS Arbitration Section) for the purposes of the arbitral proceedings may be served by any effective means.

Paragraphs 171 and 172 (above) do not apply to the service of documents for the purposes of legal proceedings, for which provision is made by rules of court.