October 5th, 2026.



Rather than struggling along and trying to create a compliant employee handbook by yourself, read this guide to see what you should include.

- An employee handbook is not automatically legally binding, but if there are sections which are also in the employee contract (i.e. contractual), then it is.

- You should include core elements such as working hours and location, disciplinary procedures and the company pension scheme. It’s also worth including culture and performance-based policies like dress code and the process for performance reviews.

- Time for distribution. You could send a PDF version over email. If it’s a small team, you could give them individual hard copies or a larger team could access a digital version through the company portal/intranet. It’s important to have a way to acknowledge that employees have read and agree to the policies. This strongly applies if there is contractual, must-know information in the handbook. Confirmation could be in the form of a tick box, an email reply or a signature, be it written or digital.

An employee handbook is incredibly useful for someone who’s in the throes of starting at a new company. It gives them a sense of what the company’s values and culture are, plus a healthy dose of reassurance....


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