Managers guide to redundancy

Name: Managers guide to redundancy | Jun 26
Brand: HRDocBox
SKU: HRDBOX-334
Price: 12.90 GBP
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Managers guide to redundancy

Step 1: Checking if redundancies are necessary

When considering making redundancies, your first step should be to check:

why you think redundancies are necessary
what issues you’re trying to solve
other options that might be available

Before starting a redundancy process, you should consider all options to reduce or even avoid redundancies.

For example, you could see if you can:

offer voluntary redundancy
change working hours
move employees into other roles
let go of temporary or contract workers
limit or stop overtime
not hire any new employees

Offer voluntary redundancy

You can give employees the option to put themselves forward for voluntary redundancy.

It's your decision whether or not to accept the volunteers, taking into account the wider needs of the organisation. It's a good idea to make this clear to employees early on.

If you do give the option of voluntary redundancy, it is important that you:

should offer it as widely as possible, not necessarily just to those at risk of redundancy
should not pressure or single anyone out
must select employees in a fair way

This can avoid the risk of indirect discrimination. For example, it could be age discrimination if you only select older employees.

Change working hours

There could be ways for you to save costs by having staff work more flexibly.

You should always talk with employees and try to reach agreement first.

For example, you could offer employees:

homeworking
job shares
to work fewer hours

If it's written in their employment contracts, you can tell employees that they need to:

stop working for a while (known as a 'temporary lay-off')
work fewer hours (known as 'short-time' working)

Lay-offs and short-time

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Use

Redundancy is the deletion of a role when it is no longer required. For example, if some or all of an organisation is:

closing, or has already closed
changing the types or number of roles needed to do certain work due to the work having diminished
changing location

The guide will help you to plan and manage each stage of the redundancy process:

Checking if redundancies are necessary
Following the right process
Informing
Consulting
Selecting
Calculating pay
Giving notice
Appeals
Offering alternative employment

Workflow

Check which resources should be implemeted before and/or after the Managers guide to redundancy, to understand the workflow.

This

Managers guide to redundancy

Redundancy Impact Assessment

Our Redundancy Impact Assessment template assists in evaluating and managing the effects of potential redundancy on employees and operations.

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Legal Insights

Compliance

This Managers guide to redundancy incorporates relevant UK laws and HR standards, including those listed below:

According to the Employment Rights Act of 1996, a redundancy situation occurs when an employer stops operating the business in which the employee was employed, stops operating the part of the business where the employee was employed, stops needing employees to perform a specific type of work, or stops needing employees to perform a specific type of work in the location where the employee was employed.

In other words, it is when:

You shut down the business completely
You close a particular part of the business, for example a team or department
You shut down at a specific location (even if you are moving to a new location)
You need less employees in a particular role (reduction in the size of the workforce).

As long as the following criteria are clearly met, redundancy is one of the five potentially reasonable reasons to terminate an employee's employment.

If concerns are linked to an employee's performance, this should be handled in accordance with standard conduct/capability processes, not redundancy.
The employer has followed a fair process (i.e., consultation and fair selection) and has provided alternative employment, if any is available, as well as looked into all other feasible choices in an effort to avoid taking redundancy action.

There is a legal obligation to notify the Secretary of State of their intention to make 20 or more employees redundant within a period of 90 days or less using form HR1.

Failure to do so is a criminal offence, which can result in an unlimited fine being levied against the employer and individual directors can also be found liable, if the offence has been committed with their consent or connivance or is attributable to their neglect.

UK employment law guidance for Managers guide to redundancy

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use this in my small business?

Yes. The Managers guide to redundancy is designed to be flexible and suitable for organisations of all sizes, including small businesses and charities. It follows UK employment law best practice, so even if you don't have an in-house HR team, you can confidently apply it.

Is it compliant with 2026 UK employment law?

Absolutely. As with the Managers guide to redundancy, all of our templates are drafted with the latest ACAS guidance and UK employment legislation in mind. We review and update them regularly, so you can be confident they remain compliant.

Can I customise it for my organisation?

Yes, we highlight the areas of the Managers guide to redundancy that you need to update with your own details, and where you need to make decisions to suit your situation. This saves you time and ensures that you meet best practice.

Do I get instant access to it?

Yes. Once purchased, you'll be able to download the Managers guide to redundancy instantly. Templates are provided in editable Word or Excel format so you can customise them easily, and in PDF format for easy sharing.

What if I need more help, not just this template?

If you're looking for broader support, we also offer toolkits and library bundles that include the Managers guide to redundancy, along with other HR templates and policies for fully managing your situation. These may be more cost-effective if you need deeper advice.

Why should I use this Managers guide to redundancy, and not AI to generate it?

The risk of using a free AI-generated template 'without review' includes your legal exposure, missing context, and no awareness of the wider process, whereas purchasing the Managers guide to redundancy from us mitigates that risk.