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View full libraryThis HR Audit Plan provides a structured framework for reviewing HR policies, processes, records and employment practices. It helps organisations identify compliance gaps, assess areas of HR risk and establish clear actions to improve people management and employment practices.
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HR Audit Plan
Audit details
| Organisation / Business Area: | |
| Audit Lead: | |
| Audit Date: | |
| Review Period: | |
| Previous Audit Date: | |
| Planned Follow-Up Date: |
Audit objectives
The objectives of this HR audit are to:
Audit scope
| Audit Area | Included? | Scope / Notes |
| HR policies and procedures | Yes / No | |
| Employment contracts / written statements | Yes / No | |
| Employee personnel records | Yes / No |
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An effective HR audit provides a structured opportunity to check whether employment practices, records, policies and people processes are working as intended and meeting relevant legal and organisational requirements. This plan provides a practical framework for carrying out the review, recording evidence and converting findings into manageable improvement actions.
The audit can cover the whole HR function or be focused on particular areas such as recruitment, contracts, employee records, pay, working time, absence, performance management, disciplinary and grievance procedures, training, equality, health and safety or employee data. The scope should reflect the organisation's size, workforce, current priorities and areas of known risk.
The audit should be based on appropriate evidence rather than assumptions. Depending on the area being reviewed, this may include policies, contracts, personnel records, HR system data, payroll records, training records, right to work evidence, absence records, recruitment documentation and completed HR processes. Sampling can be used where reviewing every record would be disproportionate.
Findings should distinguish between areas that are operating effectively, areas requiring improvement and issues requiring more urgent action. Recording the evidence behind each finding helps the organisation understand the underlying issue rather than simply identifying that a document or process is missing.
Each significant finding should result in a clear action where improvement is required. Actions should identify an owner, priority and realistic completion date. Where several issues arise, prioritising them according to legal, employee, operational and business risk helps ensure that the most important matters are addressed first.
An HR audit should result in measurable improvement rather than simply producing a report. Completed actions should be checked, outstanding risks reviewed and significant findings carried forward into future HR planning. Regular audits can also provide evidence that HR processes are being reviewed and improved over time.
Use these best practice actions, recommended timescales and process stages to understand when and how the HR Audit plan should be used, helping ensure each step is handled consistently and appropriately documented.
Understand the common mistakes to avoid when using this HR template, helping you reduce risk, prevent unnecessary costs and ensure the process is handled correctly.
There is no single legal frequency that applies to every employer. An annual review is a useful practical starting point, with additional targeted audits following significant organisational, legislative or process changes or where particular risks have been identified.
A comprehensive audit can cover recruitment, contracts and written statements, employee records, right to work checks, payroll, working time, holiday, absence, performance, disciplinary and grievance processes, equality, training, health and safety, policies and data protection. Smaller organisations can prioritise the areas most relevant to their workforce and risk profile.
No. Sampling can be a practical and proportionate approach, particularly for larger workforces. The audit plan should record the sample selected and the basis for selecting it so that the findings can be properly understood.
The issue should be documented, assessed according to its risk and investigated where necessary. An appropriate corrective action should then be assigned to a responsible person with a realistic completion date. Higher-risk matters may require immediate action rather than waiting for the next scheduled audit.
It depends on the purpose and scope of the audit. Managers and employees may provide useful evidence about how HR processes operate in practice, while consultation can also help identify issues that are not obvious from policies and records alone. Any employee information gathered should be handled appropriately under data protection requirements.
HRDocBox templates provide a structured starting point based on practical HR application, UK employment law and established HR practice. AI can help generate ideas or adapt wording, but a ready-made HRDocBox document provides a consistent framework that can be implemented, reviewed and adapted to the organisation's requirements.
Having the prompts already thought through saved a fair amount of fiddling around. The form helped different managers approach the process in a more consistent way.
We liked being able to work through the sections in a logical order. It covered the points we were most likely to overlook.
How this content is developed and reviewed
The HR Audit plan template is developed using a practical HR methodology that considers current UK employment legislation, ACAS guidance, CIPD good practice and the real-world HR process it supports. Templates and supporting information are regularly reviewed and updated, with additional reviews triggered by significant changes to legislation, guidance or established HR practice, helping ensure each document remains practical, relevant and suitable for UK employers.
Darryl Horn, Chartered HR Director
Darryl is a Chartered HR professional with over 25 years' experience in senior HR and employee relations roles.
He has extensive practical experience of managing hr strategy and project HR processes and founded hrdocbox to provide businesses with practical, professionally developed HR resources grounded in UK employment law and best practice.
HRDocBox has been creating practical UK HR documents since 2009.
"Darryl provides support and advice with excellent judgement, and has a strong understanding of people, policies and UK employment legislation."
"He is someone I trust; consistent, dependable, and committed to doing things properly."
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