First published on Tuesday, August 4, 2026
Last updated on Wednesday, August 5, 2026
Acas has proposed a complete revision of the statutory Code of Practice on Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures. This is the code Employment Tribunals use to determine if an employer has acted fairly when employees are dismissed.
Formal disciplinary and grievance procedures cost UK employers an estimated £2.36 billion a year. In its proposed new draft, Acas aims to help employers and workers prevent, manage and resolve conflict and avoid escalation, saving time, money and stress.
The draft Code encourages early and informal resolution, with a range of steps to make resolution quicker and more effective. This will make a difference to your disciplinary and grievance procedures. You’ll have to prove you’ve followed the informal steps, and confirm to the employee why these steps were unsuccessful, before moving to formal procedures.
The consultation “starts a conversation about how we can disagree better at work.”
Conversations and informal resolution would save employers like you time and money, and reduce the employment tribunal backlog. But you still need to make sure you’re getting the disciplinary process right.
Especially as the compensation for unfair dismissal will be unlimited from 1 January 2027.
To find out more, join Senior Employment Law Advisor Ellis Daniel for our webcast ‘Disciplinaries & the ACAS Code: What every business owner must know’ on Tuesday 4th August at 11:30am. You can book or watch back, using the link below.
https://www.brighthr.com/webinars/register/p-wbn-2026-08-04-disciplinaries-and-the-acas-code/
Have your say:
Contribute to the discussion up to 23rd September on the Acas website.
