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Disciplinary Policy and Procedure
ERA 2025
A comprehensive disciplinary policy for England and Wales, drafted in accordance with the ACAS Code of Practice on Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures and updated for the Employment Rights Act 2025. Covers investigation, suspension, formal hearings, the right to be accompanied, disciplinary outcomes, appeal, and ERA 2025 changes including the unfair dismissal qualifying period reduction, third-party harassment duty, and fire-and-rehire restriction.
What's included
- ✓ACAS aligned procedure
- ✓Investigation to appeal framework
- ✓ERA 2025 callouts
- ✓Warning lifecycle defaults
Recent legal changes
A disciplinary policy must comply with the Acas Code of Practice on Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures. Failure to follow the Code can result in tribunal compensation being increased by up to 25%. The Employment Rights Act 2025 strengthens the framework by making protection from unfair dismissal a day-one right for most employees, removing the previous two-year qualifying period. This template is drafted to meet the Acas Code in full and reflects the day-one unfair dismissal rights introduced by ERA 2025.
What is a Disciplinary Policy and Procedure?
A disciplinary policy is a written document that sets out how an employer will handle conduct and performance issues, including the steps the employer will take before dismissing an employee. A compliant policy explains what behaviour is treated as misconduct, what is treated as gross misconduct, how investigations are conducted, who hears disciplinary cases, what sanctions are available, and how an employee can appeal a decision. Under the Acas Code, a policy must allow the employee to know the case against them, hear the evidence, respond at a hearing, be accompanied by a colleague or trade union representative, and appeal any sanction. This template includes all of those elements and is suitable for organisations of any size operating under English employment law.
When do you need one?
Every UK employer should have a written disciplinary policy in place before any conduct or performance issue arises. Tribunals expect employers to have followed a formal procedure when defending an unfair dismissal claim, and the absence of a written policy makes that defence significantly harder. From a practical standpoint, the policy should be issued to every employee at the start of employment — typically as part of the employee handbook or as an appendix to the employment contract. It should be reviewed and updated whenever significant employment legislation changes (for example, the day-one rights changes under the Employment Rights Act 2025) and when internal practices or organisational structure shift in a way that affects who hears disciplinary cases.
Last updated: 1 May 2026
Frequently asked questions
Does this policy need to be contractual?
No, and most employers prefer it not to be. Keeping the disciplinary policy non-contractual gives the employer flexibility to update procedures without requiring employee consent. This template is drafted as a non-contractual policy by default — it is binding on the employer in the sense that tribunals will expect it to be followed, but it does not create contractual rights enforceable by the employee. If you want to make the policy contractual, you should take legal advice first.
What's the difference between misconduct and gross misconduct?
Misconduct refers to behaviour that breaches workplace standards but does not destroy the trust and confidence underlying the employment relationship — for example, persistent lateness, minor breaches of policy, or unsatisfactory performance. Gross misconduct is conduct so serious that it justifies summary dismissal without notice or pay in lieu — for example, theft, violence, serious dishonesty, deliberate falsification of records, or serious breach of health and safety rules. The template lists examples of each category but emphasises that any decision must consider the specific facts and the employee's circumstances.
Can an employee bring a lawyer to a disciplinary hearing?
Under section 10 of the Employment Relations Act 1999, an employee has a statutory right to be accompanied by a colleague or a trade union representative — but not by a lawyer. There are limited exceptions where the disciplinary outcome could affect the employee’s right to practise a regulated profession (for example, doctors, solicitors, or teachers facing potential referral to a regulator), in which case case law has established a wider right to legal representation. This template reflects the statutory baseline and includes a discretion clause permitting the employer to allow legal representation in exceptional cases.
How is this policy affected by the Employment Rights Act 2025?
The most significant change is that protection from unfair dismissal becomes a day-one right for most employees from 6 April 2026, removing the previous two-year qualifying period. This means employers cannot rely on the employee's lack of qualifying service as a defence to an unfair dismissal claim. As a result, following a fair procedure becomes critical for every dismissal, not just dismissals of long-serving employees. This template is drafted on the assumption that every disciplinary process must be capable of withstanding tribunal scrutiny from day one of employment.