Sick notes

If you’ve been off sick for more than 7 days

If you are off work due to a Hospital admission, a Sick Note will normally be issued by the Hospital to cover the period of time you were in the Hospital. Once discharged, your GP can issue a Sick Note, based on your Hospital discharge letter. 

Statement of Fitness for Work

The Doctor will provide you with a Statement of Fitness for Work (‘Fit Note’) if you are still not well enough to work. Your employer will most likely request this statement as evidence to support payment of Statutory Sick Pay (SSP). Please phone reception on 01360 770 340 after 10am

If you’ve been off sick for 7 days or less

If you’re off work sick for 7 days or less, your employer should not ask for medical evidence that you’ve been ill. Instead, they can ask you to confirm that you’ve been ill. You can do this by filling in a form yourself when you return to work. We call this self-certification.

Find out more about sick notes on the NHS Inform.

Page last reviewed: 03 September 2025
Page created: 22 May 2025