You can only give notice and make an employee redundant once you’ve finished consulting everyone.
It’s best to tell an employee face-to-face that you’re making them redundant. You should also let them know in writing.
You should include in the letter:
- their notice period
- leaving date
- how much redundancy pay they’re due
- how you calculated the redundancy pay
- any other pay you owe them (for example holiday pay)
- when and how you’ll pay them
- how they can appeal
You must give employees at least the statutory notice period. This is based on how long they’ve worked for you.
| How long they’ve worked for you | Minimum statutory notice |
| One month up to 2 years | A week |
| Between 2 and 12 years | One week per year |
| 12 years or more | 12 weeks |
You should also check your employment contracts – they might include a longer notice period.
When the notice period starts
It’s a good idea to first check if your contracts say when notice periods take effect.
It might depend on how you give employees notice for redundancy.
For example:
- if you tell the employee while they’re at work, their notice should start from the next day
- if you send the employee a letter or email, they must have a reasonable amount of time to read it before their notice starts
For example, if you give them notice in a letter sent by registered post, their notice period should start the day after they’ve received it and had time to read it.
You should make sure you know when the employee has received their notice. For example, you could:
- add a read receipt, if you send it by email
- post it by delivery that has to be signed for, if you send it in a letter
You should make sure your employee understands how long their notice period is.
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This article has been adapted from the ACAS website
