Capability Policy & Procedure - June 2026

In this section

5. Procedure

5.1 Investigation

If there is any doubt about whether an issue is a capability or disciplinary issue then an initial investigation should be undertaken to establish whether this or the disciplinary procedure should be followed.

5.2 Informal/Initial Support

When a line manager is concerned about an employee’s progress or standard of work, this will be discussed as soon as possible and appropriate support put in place (see paragraph on Actions and Support for details of the types of support which may be considered). Managers need not wait until the next performance appraisal meeting or may wish to bring the meeting forward to deal with the issues. This will be considered as the informal stage of the capability procedure and employees should be informed that a failure to improve within agreed timescales may result in the formal procedure being invoked. A written note of the agreed outcomes of any such meeting must be made and copied to the employee.

As this is intended to be an informal one to one meeting, employees will not usually have the right of accompaniment.

If informal action does not bring about an improvement or the issue is considered to be too serious to be dealt with informally then the formal procedure must be invoked.

If performance has improved within the timescales, the line manager must meet the employee to inform him/her of this and continue to monitor performance under the usual performance appraisal or supervision framework.

5.3 Formal

Stage 1

If an improvement is not forthcoming or the issue is too serious to be dealt with informally, a formal meeting with the employee must be set up. The employee must be informed in writing of the date, time and location of the meeting, the right to be accompanied, the procedure to be followed and sufficient information about the performance concerns and its possible consequences to enable an employee to prepare, including performance management records, complaints and any other relevant documents.

The line manager will conduct this meeting and will be accompanied by another line manager from within the department or a HR Business Partner. The issues for concern must be clearly stated and the employee given an opportunity to discuss them in detail and put forward their case, ask questions and agree appropriate support if appropriate.

  • The outcome of the meeting should be to consider:

  • The information or evidence submitted by the employee.

  • Whether the issue of a performance development and support agreement is appropriate  whether the standards of other employees are acceptable and consistently applied.

  • The employee’s position, length of service, past performance and reasonableness of the intended action.

  • Whether training, additional support or reasonable adjustments will assist the employee to improve and if so, what support is appropriate (see paragraph 6 Actions and Support).

  • What are realistic timescales in which the employee is expected to improve.

These decisions may not necessarily be made on the same day but will be made within 2 calendar days and the employee advised in writing including a performance development and support agreement, if appropriate. This time limit can be extended by mutual agreement.

In cases of unsatisfactory performance, the development and support plan will set out:

  • the performance problem

  • The improvement that is required

  • The timescale for achieving this improvement (this will not usually be less than 4 weeks or more than 6 months)

  • A review date, and

  • Any support, including any training that the line manager will provide to assist the employee.

The employee should be informed that the agreement represents the first stage of a formal procedure and is equivalent to a first written warning/improvement note and that failure to improve could lead to a final written warning/improvement note and, ultimately, dismissal. A copy of the note should be kept and used as the basis for monitoring and reviewing performance over a specified period (e.g. six months).

It is essential that any agreed support mechanisms are arranged and put in place as soon as possible.

Stage 2

If performance does not improve within the agreed timescales, despite support mechanisms being put in place (if appropriate) or where the issue is too serious to be dealt with by a Stage 1 meeting, the line manager will meet with the employee to discuss the issues. Again, the employee must be informed in writing of the date, time and location of the meeting, the right to be accompanied the procedure to be followed and sufficient information about the performance concerns and its possible consequences to enable an employee to prepare, including performance management records, complaints and any other relevant documents.

The same process as in Stage 1 should be followed but if it is decided that a final development and support agreement is to be issued to the employee, s/he must be advised that if his/her performance does not improve within the agreed timescale then dismissal or other actions may be considered.

See paragraph on Actions and Support for the range of options which may be considered as a result of this meeting.

Stage 3

Unfortunately, there will be cases where the employee’s performance does not improve or where the issue is so serious that it is not appropriate for it to be dealt with at Stage 1 or 2 of this procedure, and where ultimately dismissal or other actions may have to be considered.

Before this action is considered the Director of the department and the Assistant Chief Executive (People, Digital and Policy) or their nominated representatives will review the employee’s performance records and any action taken to date and meet with the employee to discuss this and to decide on the appropriate action.

As in Stages 1 and 2, a formal meeting with the employee must be set up and s/he must be informed in writing of the date, time and location of the meeting, the right to be accompanied the procedure to be followed and sufficient information about the performance concerns and its possible consequences to enable an employee to prepare, including performance management records, complaints and any other relevant documents.

At the meeting, the employee must be given the opportunity to respond to all the issues raised and to explain any failure to improve and mitigating circumstances.

The Director and Assistant Chief Executive (People, Digital and Policy) or their nominated representatives must consider all the evidence, support provided to the employee, reasonableness of any action and timescales and the case put forward by the employee before coming to a decision regarding his/her continuing employment with the Authority.

This decision does not have to be made immediately, and the meeting may need to be adjourned to consider the evidence submitted by the employee and appropriate actions. However, the outcome of the meeting must be communicated in writing within two calendar days of the meeting. This time limit can be extended by mutual agreement.

If it is decided that:

  • performance has not improved to the required standard despite the employee being given appropriate support, or

  • where the procedure has been invoked at Stage 3 and where serious performance issues have been substantiated.

Then dismissal or another penalty will be considered. (Advice must be sought from the HR Team before imposing any of these penalties) As an alternative to dismissal (where appropriate), departments are advised to consider issuing a final development and support plan in conjunction with other penalties and impose what is reasonable under the circumstances.

Other penalties include:

  • Demotion (permanent and temporary) – if temporary the period of demotion must be set out in the letter to the employee.

  • Reduction in salary (permanent and temporary) -. If temporary the period of reduction must be set out in the letter to the employee.

  • Transfer to another job or department.

This decision and the reasons for it will be communicated to the employee in writing within 2 calendar days of the Stage 3 meeting.

A decision to dismiss should not be based on an expired agreement but the fact there is an expired agreement can be a factor for determining why a lesser sanction is not considered reasonable.