Disciplinary Policy Template UK

A disciplinary policy is the document that tells everyone in your business how alleged misconduct is handled: who investigates, how the employee is told, what a hearing looks like, what sanctions are available and how to appeal. If you are looking for a disciplinary policy template UK employers can work from, the test is simple — would the process it describes stand up in front of an employment tribunal?

The process a tribunal will test

The legal work a disciplinary policy does is preventative. Tribunals in England, Wales and Scotland measure the fairness of a disciplinary process against the Acas Code of Practice on disciplinary and grievance procedures, a statutory code issued under section 199 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992. Failing to follow the Code is not, in itself, actionable. But under section 207A of the same Act, a tribunal may — if it considers it just and equitable — increase an award by no more than 25% where the employer unreasonably failed to comply, and reduce one by no more than 25% where the employee did. That power reaches the claims listed in Schedule A2 to the Act, unfair dismissal among them. A disciplinary procedure is employer-initiated: the mirror image of a grievance procedure, which the employee starts because they have a complaint. Different processes, separate documents.

When you need a disciplinary policy

You have hired your first employee — GOV.UK confirms employees and workers must be given information about disciplinary and grievance procedures in the wider written statement of employment particulars, within two months of the start of employment.
Something has just happened — suspected theft, repeated absence, misuse of client data — and you need a defensible process before acting.
You are contemplating a dismissal — the procedure you follow now is what a tribunal examines later.
Managers handle similar conduct issues differently — inconsistency is itself a fairness problem.

What a disciplinary policy should cover

Scope and status — who it covers and whether it is contractual. The Code's steps are written around employees, and it does not cover redundancy dismissals or the non-renewal of fixed-term contracts on expiry. Genuine contractors are normally managed through a contractor agreement instead.
Conduct rules — examples of ordinary and, separately, gross misconduct; vague rules make every later stage arguable.
An informal stage — the Code itself says a quiet word is often all that is required, and taking that step shows proportionality later.
Investigation — who establishes the facts, without unreasonable delay, before any decision is taken.
Written notification — the allegations, the written evidence and the possible consequences, in writing, in time for the employee to prepare an answer.
The hearing — reasonable time to prepare, a genuine chance to answer the case and to call witnesses, and, in misconduct cases where it is practicable, a decision-maker who did not run the investigation.
The right to be accompanied is a statutory right for workers under the Employment Relations Act 1999, not merely a policy promise. For a grievance hearing it is narrower than many policies assume: it applies where the hearing concerns the performance of a duty the employer owes the worker — that the contract is not being honoured, say, or that a legal obligation is being breached. Where it applies, a worker who reasonably requests it may bring one companion — a fellow worker, a trade union official, or a union-certified companion (Employment Relations Act 1999, sections 10 and 13(5)). If that companion is unavailable at the time the employer proposed, the worker may propose an alternative that is both reasonable and not more than five working days after the original date, and the employer must postpone to it.
A sanctions ladder — first written warning, final written warning, dismissal — with a stated period for which each warning stays current. A sufficiently serious first offence can go straight to a final written warning.
Suspension — the Code treats it as suspension with pay, as brief as possible, kept under review, and made clear to the employee that it is not a disciplinary sanction.
Appeals — dealt with impartially and, wherever possible, by a manager not previously involved, with the outcome confirmed in writing.

Common mistakes

One combined "disciplinary and grievance" document. The two run in opposite directions and blur when merged; customer complaints are a third process, handled through a complaints procedure.
Making the policy contractual, so any deviation risks breaching the contract. Keep it non-contractual and have your employment contract refer to it without incorporating it.
Assuming a small employer is excused from splitting the roles. Tribunals do take an employer's size and resources into account, and the Code accepts that not every employer can take every step — but in misconduct cases it asks for different people to investigate and to hear the case wherever that is practicable. If it was not, record why.
Skipping the process for "obvious" gross misconduct. Summary dismissal removes notice, not procedure — the Code says a fair disciplinary process should always be followed before dismissing for gross misconduct.
Warnings that never expire, inviting arguments about long-spent warnings years later.

What is changing from January 2027

Two changes make a weak process considerably more expensive in Great Britain. From 1 January 2027 the qualifying period for an ordinary unfair dismissal claim falls from two years to six months, and the cap on the compensatory award is removed. Both come from section 25 of the Employment Rights Act 2025, commenced for that date by regulations made in 2026. Dismissals taking effect before 1 January 2027 keep the two-year rule. The practical point for this document: from that date many more of your staff can bring a claim, and the 25% uplift will be applied to an award that is no longer capped.

England & Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland

The 1992 Act extends to England and Wales and to Scotland, and Acas covers those three nations, so the structure above and the 25% adjustment hold across Great Britain. Our template and knowledge base are written for England & Wales.

Northern Ireland is materially different, and not merely by a change of name. Employment law is devolved there, the 1992 Act does not extend to Northern Ireland, and the Acas Code does not apply. The Labour Relations Agency issues its own Code of Practice on Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures, in effect since 3 April 2011. Three differences matter. First, the equivalent adjustment power — Article 90AA of the Industrial Relations (Northern Ireland) Order 1992, inserted by section 4 of the Employment Act (Northern Ireland) 2011 — runs to 50%, not 25%. Second, Northern Ireland still has statutory dismissal and disciplinary procedures, set out in Schedule 1 to the Employment (Northern Ireland) Order 2003, which Great Britain abolished in 2009. Third, failing to complete that statutory procedure makes a dismissal automatically unfair under Article 130A of the Employment Rights (Northern Ireland) Order 1996. An Acas-anchored template is the wrong starting point in Northern Ireland; take local advice.

Frequently asked questions

What must employers tell staff about disciplinary procedures?

GOV.UK confirms employers must give employees and workers information about disciplinary and grievance procedures in the wider written statement of employment particulars, within two months of the start of employment. A written policy is the practical way to meet that duty.

What happens if an employer ignores the Acas Code?

Failing to follow the Code does not, in itself, make anyone liable to proceedings. But a tribunal will take the Code into account and, under section 207A of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992, may increase an award by no more than 25% where the employer unreasonably failed to follow it, or reduce it by no more than 25% where the employee did. The version in force is the Code published on 11 March 2015. Acas is consulting on a replacement until 23 September 2026, so check which version applies before you rewrite anything.

What is the difference between a disciplinary and a grievance procedure?

A disciplinary procedure is started by the employer over concerns about conduct or performance. A grievance procedure is started by the employee because they have a complaint. They trigger different steps and belong in separate documents.

Can we dismiss someone instantly for gross misconduct?

Gross misconduct can justify dismissal without notice, but not dismissal without process. The Code's steps — investigate, notify in writing, hold a meeting, allow a companion, offer an appeal — still apply, and skipping them is how strong cases are lost.

Does a disciplinary policy apply to contractors?

Generally no: the Code's procedural steps are written around employees. Be careful of the middle category, though — someone who is legally a worker rather than an employee still has the statutory right to be accompanied at a disciplinary hearing. Genuine contractors are managed through their contractor agreement, and putting one through a staff disciplinary process can be evidence they are really staff.

Statutory references on this page were checked against primary sources (legislation.gov.uk, GOV.UK, HSE, ICO and Acas) on 8 August 2026. Our templates themselves are not solicitor-drafted — see the note below.

This page is legal information, not legal advice.

Dogetlawyer is a Legal-Technology platform, not a law firm.

Our templates are not solicitor-drafted and have not been checked against primary sources. They are starting points to adapt, not finished documents.

This page describes the law of England and Wales unless it says otherwise. For anything significant, consider taking advice from a qualified professional.

Statutory rules change, and the Northern Ireland position differs from the one described for Great Britain.

Get the template

The disciplinary policy template is one of around 114 free UK legal templates on our A-Z index. Every title is public — browse the free UK legal contract templates index — and downloading needs a free account: registration, not payment.