What Does the Policy Cover?

What Is the Benefit of Adopting the Policy?

 Adoption

This policy sets out the arrangements for adoption leave and pay for employees who are adopting, fostering with a view to possible adoption or having a child through a surrogate. It covers notification, procedural requirements and returning to work.

The policy provides a clear and transparent approach to navigate adoption leave.

Anti-Corruption and Bribery

This policy sets out guidance for your employees on how to recognise and prevent bribery and corruption.

An anti-bribery policy can help reduce exposure to bribery and corruption and the legal, reputational and financial risks associated with it.

Capability

This policy provides a framework within which managers can work with employees to maintain satisfactory performance standards and to encourage improvement where necessary. The policy ensures that concerns over performance are dealt with fairly and that steps are taken to establish the facts and to give employees the opportunity to respond at a hearing before any formal action is taken.

This policy provides a transparent and supportive framework for addressing performance issues at an early stage. It empowers line managers and assists organisations in preventing performance issues from escalating.

Bullying & Harassment

This policy ensures that all employees and those working within your organisation are treated with dignity and respect including enjoying freedom from harassment, intimidation, victimisation or other forms of bullying at work.

This policy helps to promote a positive culture within your organisation. Putting in place a clear policy that identifies prohibited behaviours and establishes an environment where breaches are actively reported and addressed by the organisation, will help to reduce the risk of claims.

Disciplinary

Our disciplinary policy and procedure provides a framework within which managers can work with employees to maintain satisfactory standards of conduct and to encourage improvement where necessary. The policy ensures that any disciplinary matter is dealt with fairly and steps are taken to establish the facts and to give employees the opportunity to respond before taking any formal action.

A clear disciplinary procedure will help your organisation address issues of misconduct in a fair and consistent manner. This reduces the risk of any dismissal for misconduct being found by a tribunal to be procedurally unfair and it also sets expectations within the workforce of the standard of conduct expected.

Domestic Incident Leave

Our policy provides guidance on the statutory entitlement to domestic incident leave. The statutory right is to unpaid leave from work to cover emergencies or unforeseen situations, including the sudden injury or illness of a dependant, and the unexpected cancellation of childcare arrangements.

Having this policy in place can help manage staff expectations around the circumstances under which they will be entitled to take domestic incident leave, and the pay arrangements in place for such leave.​

Dress Code 

Our policy encourages all colleagues to maintain an appropriate standard of dress and personal appearance at work. It ensure takes into account any requirements for respecting all cultures and religions, making any required disability adjustments and health and safety requirements to ensure compliance.

Dress codes engender professionalism in the workplace, and to help all employees embrace the organisation's culture. If properly considered, they are can also be an important tool in terms of maintaining dignity at work.

Equal Opportunities

Our policy sets out our approach to equal opportunities and the avoidance of discrimination at work. It applies to all aspects of employment with us, including recruitment, pay and conditions, training, appraisals, promotion, conduct at work, disciplinary and grievance procedures, and termination of employment.

An equal opportunities policy demonstrates your commitment as an employer to raising awareness and tackling equality issues in the workplace. It also should reduce incidences of workplace conflict and thereby support employee retention.

Flexible Working

Our policy sets out who is eligible to make a request, what changes can be requested, the process for making a request, what factors will be relevant when considering the request and the timescales for the process.

It will provide a clear and consistent framework for managing requests. It sets expectations and helps to ensure that your organisation is acting as a reasonable employer and meeting its legal obligations.

Grievance

Our policy ensures that all employees have access to a procedure to help deal with any grievances relating to their employment fairly and without unreasonable delay. It sets out how a company should investigate and respond to any grievance raised and is compliant with the law.

It is important that all employees feel their grievances are taken seriously, and a grievance policy ensures there are fair processes in place to deal with employee concerns. Further, grievances raised in the workplace often highlight potential legal liabilities and having a policy in place to resolve disputes internally can help your organisation to proactively manage risk.

Holiday

Our policy covers information about holiday entitlement, holiday requests, sickness during periods of holiday, long-term sickness absence and holiday entitlement, family leave and holiday entitlement and arrangements on contract termination.

Having a clear and well-communicated policy avoids ambiguities and disagreements about requests for leave which can escalate to become broader HR issues, or create a negative workplace environment.

IT Acceptable Use

Our policy aims to promote effective communication and working practices within your organisation. The policy outlines the standards to be observed when using company IT systems, the circumstances in which use is monitored and the action taken in respect of breaches.

Misuse of IT and communications systems can damage an organisation and its reputation. An acceptable use policy protects your business from any legal actions, while clearly communicating to employees your expectations regarding their behaviour.

Maternity

Our policy includes information regarding antenatal appointments, how employees inform you of pregnancy, protection during maternity leave, Statutory Maternity Pay and the possibilities around returning to work after maternity leave.

Our policies provide employers with flexibility and choice whilst ensuring employers stay compliant with any current legal developments.

Menopause

Our policy provides information and guidance on the symptoms of menopause and details the importance of open conversations with colleagues. The policy provides information on risk assessments and available support and adjustments.

The policy shows a commitment to creating a supportive working environment for women experiencing the menopause and helps to promote their dignity at work. This in turn may increase retention within this demographic and help the organisation retain skills and experience.

Parental Bereavement Leave

Our parental bereavement leave policy sets out the arrangements for compassionate leave for employees following the death of a child or a stillbirth after at least 24 weeks of pregnancy. It covers entitlement, pay, leave during the first eight weeks and further leave for more than eight weeks as well as specific provisions regarding stillbirths, neonatal deaths, adoptions and surrogacy.

Having a policy at hand that employees experiencing the trauma of losing a child can turn to understand their rights helps to create a supportive culture.

Parental Leave

Our policy sets out the statutory entitlement to unpaid parental leave amounting to 18 weeks per child up to the age of 18 for staff who have been continuously employed for one year or more.

This policy helps staff understand their entitlement to parental leave, the mechanisms for providing notice to take leave, the limits of the leave that can be taken and the pay arrangements that will apply.

Paternity

Our policy outlines when an employee may be entitled to paternity leave and paternity pay, and sets out the arrangements for taking it.

Our policies provide employers with flexibility and choice whilst ensuring employers stay compliant with any current legal developments.

Relationships at Work 

Our policy governs personal relationships in the workplace whilst identifying that companies must respect the right of all staff to a private life. The policy does not prohibit staff from having a personal relationship with a work colleague but instead sets out guidelines for their conduct within the workplace and to provide a framework for managers to deal sensitively, consistently and fairly with personal relationships which may affect the organisation.

Various potential issues can arise from relationships with work colleagues. Examples might include subjective and unfair promotion decisions, preferential and inconsistent treatment of employees, confidentiality breaches, inappropriate workplace behaviour, bullying and harassment and employee grievances. Adopting this policy will help to manage these issues.

Shared Parental Leave

Our policy sets out information on entitlement to shared parental leave, how employees can opt in and end maternity leave or pay, how to request and organise shared parental leave, payment entitlement, how to facilitate redundancy during shared parental leave and facilitating returning to work.

Shared parental leave enables eligible parents to choose how to share the care of their child during the first year following birth or adoption. All eligible employees have a statutory right to take shared parental leave but the requirements and notification arrangements are complex. Therefore it is helpful to adopt a user-friendly policy to help navigate the entitlement and record the leave arrangements.

Sickness Absence

Our policy details how employees should report and provide evidence of sickness and provides information on payment entitlement, returning to work interviews and managing long-term or persistent absences. It also includes provisions on medical examinations, meetings with sick employees and next steps should matters not improve.

Implementing a sickness policy ensures that absences are managed in a consistent, supportive and effective way for both the employee and the employer. Our policy ensures employers are covered regarding their legal requirement to provide staff with information on any terms and conditions relating to incapacity for work due to sickness or injury, including provision for sick pay.

Social Media

Our policy deals with the use of all forms of social media and other social networking sites, internet postings and blogs. It applies to use of social media for business purposes as well as personal use that may affect our business in any way. It details what is considered to be prohibited use, what occurs on breach of the policy and provides guidelines for responsible use of social media.

Social media policies are imperative in a world that lives online. They provide protection for employees and security for employers by protecting the business financially and reputationally. Our policy minimises the risks to your business through use of social media.

Stress

Our policy sets out an employer's understanding of work-related stress and mental health, its commitment to identifying and eradicating sources of work-related stress and to providing a working environment which supports mental wellbeing. It explains that as an employer you want to support the mental wellbeing of all your staff and will provide appropriate support for staff who are suffering from stress or mental ill health.

A stress policy is designed to enable employers to comply with their legal obligations to provide employees with a safe and healthy workplace and create a happier and more productive workforce.

Substance Misuse

Our policy is flexible and has provision for both high-level and company specific detail. It identifies that all employers are committed to providing a safe, healthy and productive working environment which includes ensuring that all staff are fit to carry out their jobs safely and effectively in an environment which is free from alcohol and drug misuse.

A substance misuse policy prevents employee confusion and misunderstanding in often complicated situations and provides a clear position on what is considered misuse.

Time Off for Public Duties

Our policy provides information about time off work to perform any public duties, where such time off does not conflict with the operational needs of our business. The policy is flexible and provides for optional paid leave for employees undertaking public duties. It includes circumstances such as jury service, voluntary public duties and reserve forces duties.

Employees can have time off work for certain public duties as well as their normal holiday entitlement. Employers can choose to pay them for this time, but have no obligation to do so. All employees must be allowed to take time off for jury service. Employees can raise a grievance if they feel that employers aren’t allowing them to take time off for public duties, so it is vital that employers have a policy in place to appropriately respond to requests.

Whistleblowing

This policy encourages staff to report suspected wrongdoing in the knowledge that their concerns will be taken seriously and investigated as appropriate. It also provides staff with guidance as to how to raise concerns.

Whistleblowing policies provide a clear mechanism for reporting wrongdoing. This provides the employer with an opportunity to investigate the issue internally. A whistleblowing policy encourages a culture where wrongdoing is actively addressed therefore reducing the risk of regulatory action or damage to reputation.

Covid-19 Vaccination

This policy works alongside your Health and Safety and Sickness Absences policies to set out the organisation's approach to vaccination against coronavirus (COVID-19).

The policy encourages voluntary vaccination as a means of creating a workforce that is resilient to COVID 19. It addresses a number of frequently asked questions such as do unvaccinated staff qualify for sick pay if they are required to self-isolate but are not themselves unwell.

Preventing Illegal Working

It is unlawful to employ someone who does not have the right to live and work in the UK. This policy sets out a procedure for conducting compliant right to work checks.

This policy helps to prevent illegal working and to reduce the risk of incurring a civil penalty or committing a criminal offence.