End of financial year redundancy programmes tend to move quickly because budgets close, new headcount plans are set, and restructure decisions get pushed through. Speed is not the problem on its own. The risk comes when timing pressure leads to shortcuts in consultation, pooling, selection scoring, or redeployment.
A redundancy situation usually exists where the employer has a genuine business reason such as:
• The business is closing
• A workplace is closing
• There is a reduced need for employees to do work of a particular kind
• A reorganisation removes roles or reduces numbers
If the real reason is performance, conduct, sickness management, or a relationship breakdown, a redundancy label can be challenged as unfair dismissal.
Year-end programmes often create the same pressure points:
• Consultation starts late, so it looks like the decision was already made
• Selection pools are drawn narrowly, which can look engineered
• Scoring is rushed, with weak evidence behind ratings
• Redeployment is treated as a final step rather than running alongside consultation
• Cuts happen in waves across sites and teams, and the business accidentally triggers collective consultation duties
Write a short record that explains:
• What is changing and why
• What the future structure looks like
• Which roles may be affected
• Why those roles are within scope
Keep the language consistent across documents, managers, and announcements.
Pooling is often where claims begin. Tribunals look at whether the pool makes sense in reality, not on paper.
Consider:
• Who does similar work day to day
• Whether people can cover each other’s tasks
• Whether the work is interchangeable across teams or locations
• Why some roles are included and others are not
Record your reasoning. Even if the answer is straightforward, write it down.
Selection criteria should be objective where possible and supported by evidence you can show.
Common criteria include:
• Skills and experience relevant to the future need
• Qualifications that are genuinely required
• Performance history supported by appraisals, targets, or measurable output
• Disciplinary record, applied consistently
Be careful with absence scoring. Disability related absence can create discrimination risk if counted in the same way as other absence without thought and adjustment.
Consultation should give employees a real chance to respond to the proposals, challenge scoring, and propose alternatives.
A good consultation meeting normally covers:
• The business reason and proposed changes
• The pool and why it is set that way
• The selection criteria and how scoring works
• Their provisional score and the evidence behind it
• Alternatives to redundancy, including suitable roles elsewhere
• Next steps and timescales
Keep notes that show what was raised and how it was handled.
Redeployment should be active and documented. Do not leave it until after scoring is final.
Good practice includes:
• Sharing a list of suitable vacancies early
• Giving a clear route for expressions of interest
• Recording why a vacancy is suitable or not suitable
• Considering trial periods where the law allows
Your final letters should be clear and complete, covering:
• The dismissal reason and decision date
• Notice and the termination date
• Statutory redundancy pay and any enhanced scheme
• Holiday pay and benefits treatment
• Appeal route, with a deadline
An appeal can fix scoring issues or process problems if handled properly.
Collective consultation applies when an employer proposes 20 or more redundancies at one establishment within 90 days.
If collective consultation applies, you will usually need:
• Consultation with a recognised union or elected employee representatives
• A formal consultation period that starts in time to be meaningful
• Notification to the Secretary of State using the HR1 form
A common year end mistake is treating each site or each team as separate without tracking the overall numbers and timings.
Some changes are already scheduled with dates, so planning needs to reflect them:
From 6 April 2026, the maximum protective award for failing to comply with collective consultation increases from 90 days’ pay to 180 days’ pay per affected employee.
This increases the cost of getting collective consultation wrong, particularly in large programmes.
From 1 January 2027, unfair dismissal protection becomes available after six months rather than two years.
Practical effect: redundancy processes involving newer hires will carry more claim exposure. The process and evidence need to be strong for short service employees too.
If your restructure includes changing terms rather than removing roles, keep an eye on the timetable for tighter restrictions due in 2027. Even before new measures take effect, dismiss and re engage approaches can still lead to unfair dismissal and consultation disputes depending on the facts.
Timing depends on numbers and complexity, but the following pattern reduces avoidable risk:
• Early planning: lock the business case, pools, and selection method, and check whether collective consultation is likely
• Start consultation early enough to matter, including rep elections if required
• Share scoring with evidence, allow challenges, and document responses
• Keep redeployment live throughout
• Leave time for appeals before final exit dates where possible
• Redundancy Pitfall: Managers speak as if outcomes are final
Better Approach: Keep language at proposal stage until consultation genuinely ends
• Redundancy Pitfall: Pool looks designed to remove a person
Better Approach: Explain interchangeability of work and why the pool matches reality
• Redundancy Pitfall: Scoring is not evidenced
Better Approach: Tie every score to an appraisal, metrics, records, or demonstrable examples
• Redundancy Pitfall: Redeployment is a tick box step
Better Approach: Keep a written log of roles reviewed, offers made, and reasons
• Redundancy Pitfall: Equality risk not checked
Better Approach: Review whether selection outcomes disproportionately affect a protected group and document the justification or consider adjustments
Use this to pressure test whether you are ready to start consultation:
• One page business case and proposed structure chart
• Written pool rationale for each affected area
• Selection criteria and scoring guidance with evidence sources
• Consultation pack and manager briefing notes
• A central tracker for proposed redundancies by site and date
• A recorded redeployment process and vacancy list
• Draft letters covering notice, pay, and appeals
• Plan for collective consultation and HR1 if thresholds are met
End of financial year redundancy programmes can be lawful, but the legal and cost risks rise quickly when timing pressure leads to weak consultation, unclear pooling, or poorly evidenced scoring. With collective redundancy penalties increasing from 6 April 2026 and unfair dismissal rights extending to employees with six months’ service from 1 January 2027, employers need tighter planning, stronger records, and a more consistent approach to redeployment and communication. A well-paced process that treats consultation as real, not procedural, is still the most reliable way to reduce claims and protect business continuity.