Performance improvement plan (PIP) template for the UK
A complete, fair PIP you can copy today - specific objectives, the support you'll actually provide, review checkpoints at 2, 4 and 8 weeks, and outcomes stated honestly. Built around the Acas Code, with the January 2027 unfair-dismissal changes in view.
There is no statutory PIP in the UK - what the law rewards is a genuinely fair process, and the Acas Code of Practice sets its shape: investigate, inform, meet, allow a companion, and offer an appeal. A good PIP evidences that fairness for performance: objectives that are specific and measurable, support the employer actually delivers, reviews at fixed checkpoints, and the possible outcomes - pass, extend, or escalate to the capability procedure - stated honestly from day one. From 1 January 2027 the unfair-dismissal qualifying period drops to 6 months, so documented fair process matters far earlier in every employment than it used to.
Download the PIP template PDF · 3 pages · edit the [bracketed] parts
What a fair PIP needs to cover
A PIP fails in one of two ways: as a rubber stamp on a decision already made (tribunals see through it, and so does the employee), or as a vague pep talk with no measures, no support and no end. A fair one needs five things: an honest, evidenced statement of the gap; objectives someone could actually verify; the support and training the employer commits to - a PIP places obligations on both sides; fixed review checkpoints with notes; and the outcomes stated plainly, including the uncomfortable one. Wrap it in the Acas Code basics - inform in advance, meet properly, allow a companion, offer an appeal - and you have a process that is both kinder and safer.
The template
Copy everything from here to section 9 into a document or your HR system, then replace each [bracketed placeholder]. Sections 3 and 4 repeat per objective - most PIPs need two to four.
Employee: [name, role]. Manager: [name]. HR contact: [name]. Plan start: [date]. Plan length: [8 weeks], with reviews at [2, 4 and 8] weeks. Before this plan started: the concerns were investigated and discussed with the employee at an informal stage on [date(s)], the employee's own explanation was considered [summarise - e.g. workload, training gaps, personal circumstances, health], and this plan was explained at a meeting on [date] to which the employee could bring a colleague or trade union representative.
The standard expected of this role: [what good looks like, by reference to the job description / objectives / examples from peers in similar roles]. The current shortfall, with evidence: [specific, dated examples - missed deadlines, error rates, complaint details - not generalisations like "poor attitude"]. This plan exists to close that gap with support, not to punish it.
Objective [1]: [specific and measurable - e.g. "process X applications per week with an error rate below Y%", "deliver [project milestone] by [date] to [defined standard]"]. How it will be measured: [the data source or reviewer, agreed up front]. To be achieved by: [checkpoint / end of plan]. An objective the employee cannot influence, or that no one could verify, does not belong on this plan.
For objective [1], [Company name] commits to: [training course / paired working with [name] / weekly coaching session with manager / removal of conflicting duties / access to [tool]]. Owner and date for each: [who, by when]. If any support is not delivered on time, the affected objective's deadline moves with it.
Reviews at [2, 4 and 8] weeks: a scheduled meeting between employee and manager, with [HR present at the final review]. Each review records, against every objective: progress with evidence; whether the promised support happened; any obstacles raised; and anything that should adjust the plan. The employee receives a written summary within [3] working days and may add their own comments to the record. The employee may bring a colleague or trade union representative to formal reviews.
At the end of the plan there are three outcomes, and it would be wrong to hide any of them: (a) Pass - objectives met; the plan closes, and that is recorded; (b) Extend - real but incomplete progress; the plan extends by [2-4 weeks] with the same support; (c) Escalate - objectives not met without good reason; the matter moves to the formal capability procedure, which could ultimately lead to dismissal with notice. Escalation is a separate formal process with its own meeting, right to be accompanied, and right of appeal.
If ill health, disability, excessive workload or events outside the employee's control are affecting performance, tell [manager / HR] at any point - not just at reviews. Where a disability may be relevant, [Company name] will consider reasonable adjustments under the Equality Act 2010 before continuing, and where stress is a factor a stress risk assessment will be completed. Sickness absence pauses the plan clock.
The employee may appeal the decision to start this plan, any review conclusion, or the final outcome, in writing to [senior manager not previously involved] within [5] working days. Appeals are heard promptly and the outcome confirmed in writing.
Agreed (as to the plan's contents and meetings, not necessarily agreement with the concerns): Employee [name, date] - the employee may sign "received, not agreed" and attach comments. Manager: [name, date]. Copy held by [HR]. This plan and all review notes are retained on the employee's file [for X months / in line with the retention policy].
How to adapt it
Honest guidance on the choices the brackets leave open:
- Decide what you're actually doing before you start. If the honest goal is improvement, this template works. If a decision has effectively been made, a PIP used as theatre is the worst of both worlds - unfair to the person and transparent to a tribunal. Take advice instead.
- Make the support real. Section 4 is what separates a fair plan from a countdown. If you can't name the training, the coaching slot, or the duties you'll remove, you're not ready to open the plan. The deadline-moves-with-support rule keeps you honest.
- Length: match the objectives. 8 weeks with 2/4/8 checkpoints suits most roles; complex or long-cycle work may need 12. A 2-week PIP for a role with monthly outputs is a paper exercise and reads as one.
- January 2027 changes the maths. From 1 January 2027 the unfair-dismissal qualifying period drops to 6 months, so "they're new, we don't need process" stops being true very early in employment. Build the habit now - our guide to the six-month rule covers what it changes in practice.
- Follow the Acas Code even where it isn't strictly mandatory. The Code formally governs disciplinary and grievance procedures, and tribunals can adjust awards for unreasonable failures to follow it - running your PIP to its standard (inform, meet, accompany, appeal) is cheap insurance and better management. This template is a starting point, not legal advice: for dismissal-stage decisions, involve a professional.
- Look upstream first. A surprising number of PIPs are really feedback failures - the person is hearing the standard for the first time in section 2. Regular documented 1:1s and honest return-to-work conversations catch most performance drift long before a plan is needed.
Running the plan day to day
The clause that fails first is 5 - reviews slip, notes never get written, and six months later nobody can evidence what was agreed. In CoDash the performance module keeps 1:1s scheduled and documented, objectives tracked against dates, and every review noted with a timestamped trail - which is exactly the record a fair process depends on. See performance.
Frequently asked questions
Is a PIP a legal requirement in the UK?
No - there's no statutory PIP. What matters legally is a fair process, and the Acas Code sets its shape: investigate, inform, meet, allow a companion, offer an appeal. A PIP is the standard way to evidence that fairness for performance.
How long should a PIP last?
Long enough for genuine improvement - commonly 4 to 12 weeks with checkpoints (this template uses 2/4/8 weeks). A plan too short to pass looks like a paper exercise.
What are the possible outcomes of a PIP?
Pass and close, extend where there's real but incomplete progress, or escalate to the formal capability procedure. The employee should be told all three at the start - including the uncomfortable one.
Is there an official Acas PIP template?
No - and it's worth knowing that before you search for one. Acas's employer templates catalogue (checked August 2026) has appraisal forms, disciplinary and investigation letters and example policies, but no PIP template. What Acas gives you is the Code of Practice that shapes the fair process - which is exactly what the template above implements, so you can use it knowing it's built on the same foundations an "official" one would be.
What changes for PIPs in January 2027?
From 1 January 2027 the unfair-dismissal qualifying period drops to 6 months, so documented fair performance management becomes essential from early in every employment, not from year two.
Can an employee bring someone to PIP meetings?
The statutory right to be accompanied covers disciplinary and grievance hearings, but this template allows a colleague or union rep at formal PIP reviews too - it lowers the temperature and matches the spirit of the Acas Code.
More to download: All 30 templates · 66 guides explaining the rules · 24 calculators
A paper trail that writes itself
CoDash's performance module keeps 1:1s scheduled and documented, objectives tracked, and every review on a timestamped trail - so when a plan is needed, the fair process is already evidenced. Try it in the demo.
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