New hire checklist: A step-by-step guide to onboarding employees In UK [2024]

So you’ve expanded your business to the United Kingdom and hired your first employee. Congratulations!

With that complete, it’s time to focus on creating a positive onboarding experience to set your new employee up for success. Statistics show that a great onboarding experience increases UK employee retention by a significant 82%. Employee retention doesn’t just have implications for morale; it also saves you money. Oxford Economics research shows the average cost of turnover per team member is over £30,000.

A top-quality onboarding experience is a months-long process, but getting it right is well worth it. Our employee onboarding checklist covers what you need to know—including a useful 90-day onboarding plan, paperwork and compliance, devices and access to apps, and training—to ensure your new hire is successful during their tenure at your company.

Before their first day

• Collect the necessary documents from your new hire. For a smooth onboarding process, ask for new hire paperwork that will verify the employee’s right to work and get them set up in payroll. The following documents are needed to ensure the employee has the legal right to work in the UK:
• Passport
• National identity card
• National Insurance number
• Work Visa, which should include their Tier 2, or General Visa (if needed)
• A certificate of registration showing they are a naturalized British citizen or one that certifies they are legally a permanent resident

If you’re not sure exactly which documents you need, you can verify them on gov.uk.

To get the employee set up in payroll, ask for their P45–this form shows the amount of tax they’ve paid from their salary so far that year. 

• Loop in HR. Once you’ve made your hiring decision and the recruitment process is over, send the new hire’s application to your Human Resources department. In addition to ensuring the new employee has the legal right to work in the UK, they’ll also determine if the individual needs to go through a DBS check (Disclosure and Barring Service check, formerly known as a CRB check). DBS checks are necessary for employees who will be working with vulnerable individuals or in positions where they’ll be responsible for security. 

• Get consent and run a background check. HR can also help you run an employee background check, which is required under the 2008 Employment Background Check Act and includes criminal and right-to-work checks. One final, but important note to keep in mind: You must obtain consent from the new hire before you run any pre-employment screening. Read our full guide to employment background checks in the UK to learn more.

• Send an offer letter. Also known as a written statement or employment contract, an offer letter must be sent to any new hire you’ll be employing for longer than one month. To be legally compliant, job offer letters must contain the employee’s start date, position title, job description, hours of work, compensation and benefits, details of the company’s confidentiality policy and a non-disclosure agreement (NDA), and company policies on termination. For a complete checklist of what should be included in an offer letter in the UK, check out our guide.

• Register the new employee with HM Revenue and Customs. To begin paying your employee, you must register them with HMRC (His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs) so you can enroll them in the UK’s PAYE (pay-as-you-earn) Scheme. To do this, you’ll need to fill out a Full Payment Submission (FPS) for HMRC. Include the following information:
• Their tax code and new starter declaration form (if they don’t have a P45)
• Information you’ve collected from their P45
• Total pay and taxes to date (for the current year)
• National Insurance number
• Student loan deduction status

This information must be in the hands of the HMRC either on or before their first payday. Additionally, you need to give your employee a payroll ID. 

*Note: Contractors who are transitioning to employees will not have a P45 so they will need to use their self assessment form and employee's can also use their final payslip from their previous employer, as P45's can be issued up to a month after the employee leaves and the employer will want to get this information in before their first payroll to ensure the employee does not pay more tax than they need to.

On Day 1

• Make sure their workspace is set up. If your new employee works in the office, swing by and check that they have a desk, working laptop, office supplies, and maybe even a welcome card ready before they come in. If they work from home, set up a Zoom call to see if they need anything, and give them a quick video tour so they’re ready to hit the ground running. You may even want to send them a welcome basket or card to make them feel appreciated from day one.
• Encourage your team to reach out to their new coworker. Either the day before the new employee starts or the morning of, shoot the rest of the company an email encouraging them to say hello and introduce themselves. If the new employee works from home, suggest sending an email or Slack message. If they work in person, cater a company lunch so everyone has a chance to mingle. For help crafting the perfect “welcome to the team” email, check out our guide. 
• Schedule their orientation. Introduce your new hire to both your workplace and your team by scheduling an orientation for their first day. It should include, at minimum, a 1:1 with their direct manager, a meeting with the team they’ll be working with, and anything else they may need to get started.
• Set up a get-to-know-you event. To build camaraderie and ensure your new hire doesn’t feel like a stranger on their first day, set up a social event with their closest team members. Statistics show that 79% of employees would love to attend in-person events to meet their coworkers and feel like part of the team. Since The UK is well known for its pubs, one idea is to schedule a happy hour during the new hire’s first week.
• Assign them an onboarding buddy or mentor. The buddy system works just as well in the workplace as it did in grade school. Before they start their new job, assign a team member who will act as a point person for your new hire. Schedule a 1:1 with this person on their first day so they have a friendly face and a guide to show them around. They can answer questions about company policy, help the new employees settle in, and introduce them to other team members. 
• Give an office tour. An office tour is a necessity for new hires working on-site. Not only will it give them the chance to meet some of their coworkers, but they’ll learn where the bathrooms, break areas, and meeting rooms are.

During their first 90 days

• Schedule role-specific training. The hallmark of a great onboarding process is giving your new hires the training they need (on all fronts) to meet their objectives. During the first 30 days, they should receive lots of hands-on training to ensure they know how to use the software they’ll need, understand the hierarchy of the company, and have a thorough knowledge of their job responsibilities and role expectations. Turn these objectives into a list of goals, and have the new hire meet regularly with their manager to help them stay on track.

• Assign them work. After the first month of training, get your new hire started on some projects. Make sure to monitor their progress carefully. After all, there’s naturally going to be a learning curve, and this is the time for them to make mistakes and get clarity. Set goals for this period of time, too. A framework like SMART goals—setting goals that are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time-bound will ensure your new hire has clear objectives to work towards, which will help guide their actions during this critical time and ensure they don’t feel lost. At the end of this period, schedule some time to discuss their feedback on the process and give your own.

• Let the employee demonstrate their mastery. During the last 30 days of the onboarding process, give your employee the chance to demonstrate what they’ve learned so far. Create opportunities for them to use the knowledge they gained from training–and the expertise that made you hire them in the first place–to fully contribute to the team they’re working on.

• Offer regular feedback. New starters are more likely to succeed and correct mistakes if feedback about their performance is communicated with them clearly. Set up semi-regular meetings to discuss how they’re doing, acknowledge their wins, and highlight potential areas for growth. 

• Encourage the new employee to give you their feedback. By asking for a new employee’s honest feedback about the onboarding process, you’ll get a sense of what’s going well and what can be improved in the future.
• Schedule end of probationary period meeting. This meeting is to discuss the employee’s performance and whether or not the employee will pass their probation period.

Make onboarding a breeze with Rippling

If you're going to hire employees, contractors, or remote workers in the UK, you need more than just a new hire checklist: you need Rippling. 

Rippling makes it easy to onboard and manage employees and contractors around the world—in one system that helps keep you compliant with local employment laws and regulations.

And with Rippling, onboarding new employees is a breeze. Complete and verify background checks, send offer letters, and store digital documents—all from one centralized location.