1. Introduction
St George’s, University of London provides mobile phones for staff to be used in support of their business activities and work-related duties.
The purpose of this policy is to set out the guidelines and standards which regulate the provision and use of University mobile phones, tablets, data cards and data equipment, also hereinafter individually or jointly referred to as device or devices. Any St George’s member of staff supplied with a University device is, therefore, expected to abide by the terms and conditions outlined in this policy.
This policy applies to the use of University owned devices only.
2. General Principles
Requests for a University device must be submitted via the official form on the Portal
Where an employee works in areas where mobile phone coverage is limited or poor, the employee must consider other methods of communication.
Where the University provides a data card, employees are required to stay within the contractual download limits. Failure to comply with this requirement may result in the employee being liable for any subsequent charges.
St George’s has an agreement in place with O2 for devices and contracts. Exceptions for devices and contracts from other providers must be applied for and authorised by the Director or Deputy Director of Finance.
St George’s may, at its absolute discretion, cap mobile phone expenses or withdraw access to a device altogether.
There is a cap of £400 on the cost of any devices purchased. Exceptions for devices above this limit must be applied for and authorised by the Director or Deputy Director of Finance.
3. Eligibility
The allocation of a University device will be subject to approval and to the individual meeting certain criteria. All requests for a device from Academic Institutes must be routed through an Institute Director or Institute Manager/Head of Operations for approval. All requests from Administration staff must be approved by either the Chief Operating Officer or the Director of Finance or delegated Deputy.
Requests for a University device may be considered for:
- Staff whose roles frequently take them off-campus on University business
- Staff who are based off-campus for more than 40% of their working time
- Staff who need to be contactable by the University whilst out of the office
- Staff designated as ‘emergency contacts’ for the University
- Staff who work alone and outside of ‘regular’ office hours, and where access to the main University communication system is limited
- Staff who require a mobile phone in the interest of health and safety and/or for business continuity reasons
If a device is required for patient/clinical duties, this should be provided through the NHS Trust for whom those duties are undertaken or paid for by the individual if for private practice work
If you have any queries regarding eligibility for a University device please contact Finance.
4. Conditions of Use
Anyone issued with a University device has a duty to ensure it is used for the intended purposes only, that they obtain the relevant help and advice in their use of the device, and that they adhere to the ‘Conditions Of Use’ specified below:
Ownership
St George’s supplied mobile phones remain the property of St George’s at all times, and St George’s reserves the right to audit or monitor their use in the same way as any other item of electronic equipment used for St George’s business purposes.
Agreement
Employees must ensure that they have read and understood this Policy and agree to abide by the terms of this Policy.
Understanding how to use device
Employees are responsible for ensuring that they understand how to use the device correctly; that they obtain the relevant help or advice in configuring their device for appropriate usage; that they do not contravene the ‘Conditions Of Use’ outlined in this document or any other University policy relevant to the use of the St George’s device.
Selection of device
Employees will be required to select a device based on the list of approved devices / platforms.
Assignment/Re-Assignment
Devices will be assigned to a named individual and must not be passed onto, or used by, any other person(s) except by prior arrangement with the Institute or Departmental Manager and notification to Finance and Procurement Services.
Private Use
Devices are intended for work-related use only however, subject to departmental approval, limited incidental private use is permitted within the data plan allowances. A department may seek reimbursement for private calls or other charges above the regular data plan.
Review of Bills/Statements
Statements are sent to Finance to aid charging of the monthly bills. Budget holders should check that charges incurred are in line with the plan agreed. Device users or budget holders can contact finance if they wish to review statements for their device.
Statement Queries
Any queries on the related statements are the responsibility of the device holder.
Other Queries
Queries regarding bills or usage should be directed to Finance, technical queries should be directed to Information Services or the service provider and contractual queries to Procurement Services.
Confidential/Sensitive Data
Mobile phones should not be used to routinely store secure information such as St George’s network account and system passwords or other confidential data, or to store any ‘sensitive personal data’ as defined by the Data Protection Act (e.g. health records).
Video, Sound, Photographic Images
Recording of video, sound or photographic images using St George’s devices is only permitted for work purposes and only after appropriate permission / consent from the person(s) involved has been obtained, as well as authorisation from the relevant section or department head. St George’s devices must not be used to engage in activities that are explicitly prohibited.
Reporting faults
Users should report any damage or faults with the device as soon as possible to the contract provider.
Reporting Loss or Theft
Users must report the loss or theft of their device immediately to the Deputy Director of Finance and the contract provider.
Locking
Devices should be ‘locked’ when not in use.
Memory/Internal Storage
Users are responsible for managing the use of their device’s memory / internal storage in an appropriate manner and in line with all relevant conditions stipulated elsewhere in this document.
Security
Users of a St George’s device have a responsibility to makes sure that the device, and any data on it, is kept securely and undamaged in their care.
Third Party Use
The employee must not allow any other person make use of the device, if such use occurs, the employee is responsible for any calls or other usage made.
Disused Devices
Devices which are no longer required must be passed to Finance, along with all the relevant accessories (e.g. chargers, USB cables). Staff must return their device to Finance prior to leaving the St George’s employment. Failure to do so will result in them being invoiced for the full cost of the device. Procurement should be informed to terminate the contract with the provider.
Use Abroad
The employee must make arrangements for cost effective use of the device abroad before leaving the United Kingdom.
Maternity or Extended Sick Leave
Staff on maternity leave or extended sick leave may be required to return their device for redeployment to another staff member.
Use while driving or on the move
Staff should never make or receive calls, send or read texts or emails or surf the internet or use a mobile phone or any similar device while driving. St George’s will not be held liable for any accident(s), loss or damage occurring as a result of the use of a St George’s supplied device by its user. Staff should ensure that they do not put themselves or anyone else in danger of a traffic accident caused by negligent or improper use of a St George’s supplied device. This would equally apply to situations such as cycling, walking or crossing a road.
Sensitive Equipment
Before using a device on a restricted site e.g. St George’s University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, etc. employees should check that usage will not interfere with sensitive equipment. The use of devices may also be subject to local restrictions and regulations which must be observed. St George’s employees are also reminded to ensure confidentiality and security is upheld when using a device in public places.
5. Budget Holder’s Responsibilities
The budget holder must ensure devices on their budget are returned to Finance when the employee leaves St George’s employment or are no longer necessary.
The budget holder must inform Finance if the charges for a device are to be transferred from one sub-project to another.
Budget holders must keep a list of devices and users which they are paying for and ensure that this list is kept up to date at all times and inform Finance if there are any discrepancies between this and the monthly recharges.
The budget holder must ensure that terminations and/or cancellations are communicated to Finance and Procurement as soon as they are aware so that unnecessary cost is avoided.
6. Best Practice
There are different ways of connecting to the internet, and of transferring data, using a device (the options available may depend on what technologies your device supports). It is important that you understand the best way to configure your device in order to make the most effective use of it and, more importantly, minimise the associated costs.
You are strongly advised to consider the following guidance on ‘best practice’ in your use of your device:
- Familiarise yourself with the different options for synchronising data on your device - controlling the amount of data you transfer, and the way in which you do it, can help reduce the costs involved.
- When visiting institutions which support eduroam, e.g. another university, make sure your device is configured for connection to the eduroam wireless network.