What is the Right to Appeal?

An appeal gives you the opportunity to ask your employer to review a disciplinary, grievance or dismissal decision that you believe is wrong, unfair or based on an improper process.

Under the Acas Code of Practice on disciplinary and grievance procedures, employees should be given an opportunity to appeal disciplinary and grievance outcomes.

Your employer's policy should normally explain:

• How to submit an appeal
• Who the appeal should be sent to
• The deadline for appealing
• How the appeal process will be handled
• Whether an appeal hearing will take place

If the employer's policy does not specify a deadline, an appeal should be submitted as soon as reasonably possible. Acas considers five working days from receiving the outcome to be an appropriate timeframe in many cases.

An appeal will normally need to be made in writing and should clearly explain why you believe the original decision should be reconsidered.

A failure to follow the Acas Code does not automatically create a separate legal claim. However, an Employment Tribunal can take unreasonable failures to follow the Code into account and, in relevant cases, may increase or reduce compensation by up to 25%.

On What Grounds Can You Appeal a Disciplinary Decision?

There is no single prescribed list of grounds for appealing a disciplinary decision.

You may appeal where you believe that the outcome was wrong, unjust or reached through an unfair process.

Possible grounds can include:

• New evidence has become available
• Important evidence was not properly considered
• The disciplinary sanction was excessive or disproportionate
• Similar cases were treated differently without good reason
• The investigation was inadequate
• The employer failed to follow its own disciplinary procedure
• You were not given sufficient time or information to prepare
• Relevant witnesses or evidence were ignored
• The original decision-maker was biased or lacked impartiality
• The conclusions reached were not supported by the available evidence

Your written appeal should usually explain the particular grounds that apply to your circumstances and what outcome you would like the employer to consider.

What Should Your Employer Do After Receiving an Appeal?

An appeal should be treated as an important part of the overall disciplinary or grievance process.

Your employer should deal with it fairly and without unreasonable delay.

Where possible, the appeal should be handled by someone who:

• Was not involved in the original decision
• Is sufficiently senior or authorised to reconsider the outcome
• Can approach the matter impartially
• Has authority to make the final decision

In smaller organisations, it may not always be possible to find a manager who has had no previous involvement. In those circumstances, the employer should still take reasonable steps to make the appeal process as independent and impartial as possible.

Your employer should normally tell you in advance about the appeal hearing, including the date, time and location or method of the meeting.

Are You Entitled to Be Accompanied at an Appeal Hearing?

Yes.

Employees and workers have a statutory right to be accompanied at disciplinary and grievance appeal hearings where the right applies.

You can normally make a reasonable request to be accompanied by:

• A work colleague
• A trade union representative
• An official employed by a trade union

Your companion may be able to support you during the hearing, present your case, respond to points raised and confer with you during the meeting.

Your employer should inform you of your right to be accompanied when arranging the appeal hearing.

What Happens at an Appeal Hearing?

An appeal hearing gives you an opportunity to explain why you believe the original outcome should be changed.

Depending on the grounds of appeal, the employer may review the original decision or carry out a fuller rehearing of the matter.

You may be able to:

• Explain your grounds of appeal
• Present new evidence
• Highlight problems with the original investigation
• Challenge factual inaccuracies
• Explain why you consider the sanction unreasonable
• Draw attention to inconsistent treatment
• Respond to questions from the appeal manager

The employer may carry out further investigation if this is necessary before reaching a final decision.

When Should You Receive the Appeal Outcome?

Your employer should communicate the appeal decision without unreasonable delay.

The outcome should normally be provided in writing and should explain:

• Whether the appeal has been upheld or rejected
• The employer's decision
• The reasons for that decision
• Whether any disciplinary sanction has changed
• Whether the decision is final under the employer's procedure

It is not unusual for the employer to take some time after the appeal hearing to consider the evidence before providing the final outcome.

Can a Dismissal Still Be Fair if an Employer Does Not Offer an Appeal?

A failure to provide an appeal does not automatically mean that every dismissal will be legally unfair.

However, an Employment Tribunal will consider the fairness of the procedure as a whole.

Where the Acas Code applies, refusing a reasonable opportunity to appeal can weigh against the employer when the Tribunal considers whether the dismissal was handled fairly.

The circumstances of the organisation, the nature of the case and whether an appeal could realistically have corrected any problems with the original process may all be relevant.

Employers should therefore generally provide a proper appeal process rather than assuming that an appeal would make no difference.

Do You Have to Attend an Appeal Hearing in Person?

An appeal will usually involve a hearing or meeting, as this gives both you and your employer an opportunity to discuss the issues properly.

However, there may be circumstances where an appeal can be dealt with in writing.

For example, this might be considered where:

• You cannot reasonably attend a meeting
• You prefer the appeal to be considered from written submissions
• Both parties agree that a hearing is unnecessary
• The employer's procedure allows for a written appeal

You should consider carefully before asking for the appeal to be determined entirely in writing, as you may lose the opportunity to respond immediately to questions or clarify particular issues.

Can Your Disciplinary Sanction Be Increased Because You Appealed?

You should not be penalised simply because you exercised your right to appeal.

An appeal should not normally be used as an opportunity to increase the original disciplinary penalty merely because you challenged the decision.

If genuinely new and separate misconduct allegations emerge, the employer may need to investigate those matters through an appropriate disciplinary process rather than simply increasing the original sanction during the appeal.

The purpose of an appeal is to review the fairness and correctness of the original decision, not to discourage employees from challenging an outcome.

Should You Appeal Against a Dismissal?

Whether to appeal a dismissal will depend on your circumstances and what you want to achieve.

An appeal may be particularly appropriate if:

• You believe the dismissal was unjustified
• You want your job back
• Important evidence was overlooked
• The investigation was inadequate
• The employer failed to follow a fair procedure
• The sanction of dismissal was disproportionate
• You want the employer to reconsider the decision before further legal action

An appeal also creates a written record of the concerns you raised and gives the employer an opportunity to correct any errors.

However, you should consider what would happen if the appeal succeeds.

Where an appeal against dismissal is upheld, the usual position is that the dismissal is overturned and you are reinstated, with continuity of employment preserved.

If you definitely do not wish to return to the organisation, this is something you should consider before deciding how to proceed with an appeal.

Can an Appeal Help Lead to a Settlement?

Sometimes an appeal creates an opportunity for the employee and employer to reconsider whether continuing the employment relationship is realistic.

Where both sides recognise that the working relationship has seriously deteriorated, they may consider discussing an agreed exit instead of allowing the dispute to escalate.

This can potentially involve a settlement agreement, under which the parties agree legally binding terms for ending the employment relationship.

Whether settlement discussions are appropriate will depend entirely on the circumstances. An employee should obtain independent legal advice before entering into a settlement agreement.

Can Failing to Appeal Affect an Employment Tribunal Claim?

Potentially, yes.

Where the Acas Code applies, an Employment Tribunal may reduce compensation by up to 25% if it considers that an employee unreasonably failed to follow an available appeal procedure.

This does not mean that every failure to appeal will result in a reduction.

A Tribunal may consider whether there was a reasonable explanation for not appealing, including the circumstances surrounding the dismissal and whether the process was realistically capable of resolving the dispute.

For this reason, employees considering an Employment Tribunal claim should think carefully before deciding not to use an available internal appeal process.

What Happens if Your Dismissal Appeal is Successful?

If your employer upholds an appeal against dismissal, you will normally be reinstated.

The effect is generally that the original dismissal is treated as having been overturned.

Your employer should normally:

• Restore your employment
• Preserve your continuous service
• Deal with any wages lost following the original dismissal
• Correct relevant employment records

A successful dismissal appeal can significantly affect any potential unfair dismissal claim because the original dismissal may effectively cease to exist.

This is another reason why you should consider your desired outcome before submitting an appeal.

Should You Appeal a Grievance Decision?

If you believe that your grievance outcome is wrong or does not properly address the problem you raised, an appeal can give the employer an opportunity to reconsider it.

You may wish to appeal where:

• Relevant evidence was overlooked
• Your complaint was not properly investigated
• You believe the conclusions were unreasonable
• The procedure was unfair
• The proposed solution does not address the problem
• New evidence has emerged

If you want to continue working for the employer, an appeal may also provide an opportunity to resolve the dispute internally before the working relationship deteriorates further.

If the employment relationship has already broken down seriously, you should obtain advice before making major decisions such as resigning.

Resigning in the hope of bringing a constructive dismissal claim can carry significant legal and financial risks, and such claims are highly dependent on the particular circumstances.

Can You Appeal Against a Redundancy Dismissal?

Redundancy appeals are treated differently from disciplinary and grievance appeals.

The Acas disciplinary and grievance Code does not create a separate appeal procedure for redundancy dismissals. However, if you believe that you were selected unfairly or that there was a problem with the redundancy process, your employer should give you an opportunity to appeal.

You may wish to challenge a redundancy decision where, for example:

• The selection criteria were unfair
• The criteria were applied incorrectly
• The redundancy pool was inappropriate
• There was insufficient consultation
• Alternatives to redundancy were not properly considered
• A suitable alternative role was available
• The redundancy situation was not genuine
• Discrimination influenced the selection decision
• The employer failed to follow its own redundancy procedure

If the employer's redundancy policy expressly provides for an appeal, the employer should normally follow that procedure.

A failure to provide or properly consider an appeal can also be relevant when assessing whether the redundancy dismissal was fair.

Why Can a Redundancy Appeal Be Important?

An appeal provides an employer with an opportunity to reconsider the redundancy process before the dispute progresses further.

It may allow procedural problems to be identified and corrected, such as:

• Incorrect scoring
• An unfair selection pool
• Missing information
• Inadequate consultation
• Failure to consider alternative employment

For the employee, an appeal provides an opportunity to formally explain why they believe the redundancy decision was unfair.

For the employer, it can provide a final opportunity to correct mistakes and demonstrate that a fair process has been followed.

What Happens if a Redundancy Appeal Succeeds?

If your redundancy appeal succeeds while you are still working your notice period, the employer can withdraw the redundancy decision and your employment should continue.

If your employment has already ended, the employer may reinstate you.

Where reinstatement takes place, your continuity of employment should normally be preserved and you should be paid for the relevant period you were out of work.

If you have already received statutory or contractual redundancy pay, you may normally be required to repay it following successful reinstatement.

How Long Do You Have to Lodge an Internal Appeal?

You should first check:

• Your employment contract
• Your employer's disciplinary procedure
• Your grievance procedure
• Your redundancy policy
• The outcome or dismissal letter you received

These documents may specify a particular appeal deadline.

In disciplinary and grievance matters, five working days is commonly regarded by Acas as an appropriate period, although an employer's own procedure may provide a different reasonable timeframe.

If you intend to appeal, it is generally best to do so promptly and in writing.

Employment Tribunal Time Limits

An internal appeal does not normally extend the deadline for starting the Employment Tribunal process.

As at 7 September 2026, the general time limit for most Employment Tribunal claims, including ordinary unfair dismissal claims, is usually three months minus one day.

For an unfair dismissal claim, the time limit will generally run from the effective date of termination, not from the date on which the employer gives you the result of an internal appeal.

You must normally notify Acas before bringing an Employment Tribunal claim. Where Acas is notified within the applicable time limit, Early Conciliation can pause the limitation period while the process takes place.

From 1 October 2026, the general Employment Tribunal limitation period for most claims will increase to six months minus one day where the relevant time limit starts on or after that date.

You should therefore never assume that waiting for an internal appeal outcome will protect your Employment Tribunal deadline.

Are Appeals Usually Successful?

There is no reliable rule about how often appeals succeed.

The outcome will depend on the evidence, the grounds of appeal and the fairness of the original decision-making process.

An appeal may have a stronger prospect of changing the outcome where:

• Significant new evidence has emerged
• There were serious procedural errors
• Important evidence was ignored
• The original conclusions were unsupported
• The sanction was clearly disproportionate
• Comparable cases were treated inconsistently

Even where the appeal is not upheld, using the procedure can clarify the employer's position, preserve a clear record of the dispute and provide an opportunity to address issues before further action is considered.

Should You Get Advice Before Appealing?

An appeal can have important consequences, particularly where dismissal, redundancy, discrimination, a potential settlement agreement or an Employment Tribunal claim is involved.

Before deciding on your approach, it can be useful to understand:

• What outcome you actually want
• The strength of your grounds of appeal
• Whether reinstatement would be desirable
• The relevant Employment Tribunal deadline
• Whether settlement discussions may be appropriate
• How the appeal could affect any future legal claim

Taking advice early can help you decide whether an appeal is the right step and how best to present your case.