How to review an employment contract in England and Wales

An employment contract in England and Wales has to do two jobs: give the employee the written particulars the Employment Rights Act 1996 requires, and protect the employer with terms a court will actually enforce. The Employment Rights Act 2025 is now changing several of the rules underneath. This guide covers what to check and how to redline the contract in Word with LexDraft.

Last checked: 17 October 2026. The law changes; check the current position before relying on this page.

The section 1 written statement

Under section 1 of the Employment Rights Act 1996, employees and workers are entitled to a written statement of particulars from day one of employment. The main statement must cover, among other things:

• the names of employer and worker, the start date and the date continuous employment began;
• pay (rate, method and intervals), hours and days of work, and whether they can vary;
• holiday entitlement, sick pay and other paid leave;
• notice periods, job title or description, place of work, and any probation period;
• other benefits, training requirements, and, for temporary roles, the expected duration.

Some details, such as pensions and disciplinary rules, can be in a separate document the statement refers to. Check the contract against the list rather than assuming the precedent is complete.

Restrictive covenants

Post-termination restrictions are a restraint of trade. They are enforceable only if they protect a legitimate business interest (such as confidential information, client connections or workforce stability) and go no further than reasonably necessary. Check each one separately:

• Non-compete. Length, scope of activity and geography. Many are drafted too wide for the role. The government published a working paper on reforming non-competes in November 2025, including options such as a statutory length limit; its consultation closed in February 2026. As of October 2026 we are not aware of legislation, so the common law test still applies.
• Non-solicitation and non-dealing. Limit them to clients and colleagues the employee actually dealt with in a recent period.
• Garden leave. Check that the contract gives an express right, and whether garden leave reduces any post-termination restriction.
• Severance. Make each restriction a separate clause so a court can strike out one without losing the rest.

Confidentiality and NDAs

Since 1 October 2025, section 17 of the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 makes void any confidentiality term that would stop a victim of crime from making certain disclosures, such as to the police, a lawyer or a regulated professional. The Employment Rights Act 2025 goes further for harassment and discrimination, making many NDA terms void, but that provision is not yet in force; the government has indicated 2027. Check that confidentiality clauses carve out protected disclosures (whistleblowing) and these statutory rights.

Employment Rights Act 2025: what is changing

The Employment Rights Act 2025 received Royal Assent on 18 December 2025 and is being brought into force in stages. Reported dates include day-one paternity and unpaid parental leave and Statutory Sick Pay changes from April 2026, and a reduction of the unfair dismissal qualifying period from two years to six months from 1 January 2027. Other measures, including fire and rehire restrictions and changes to zero-hours contracts, depend on regulations and later commencement dates. Check the government's implementation roadmap and commencement regulations before relying on any date.

For contracts being drafted now, that means probation periods, notice clauses and dismissal processes deserve a fresh look.

Other clauses to check

• Working time. Any opt-out from the 48-hour average week under the Working Time Regulations 1998 must be voluntary and in writing.
• Deductions. Deductions from wages need contractual authority under Part II of the 1996 Act. Check clawback of training costs and overpayments.
• Intellectual property. Confirm that works and inventions made in the course of employment belong to the employer, and that the clause does not overreach.
• Data protection. Employee privacy information belongs in a privacy notice, not in a consent clause in the contract.

Review the employment contract in Word with LexDraft

1. Open the employment contract in Word, open LexDraft from the Home tab and set the jurisdiction chip to UK: England & Wales (or UK: Scotland or UK: Northern Ireland if that is the governing law).
2. Run the quick checks. They are rule-based and run without AI, catching undefined or unused defined terms, broken cross-references, numbering gaps and inconsistent capitalisation.
3. Run the review. LexDraft has no dedicated employment playbook, so this runs as a general review under English law; direct it with the checklist above. Findings are graded Critical, High, Medium or Low, and LexDraft flags standard terms that are missing.
4. Accept or reject each proposed redline. Accepted edits land as native Word tracked changes, ready for the other side.
5. Ask the Assistant to explain a clause in plain English or suggest wording for your side. Answers use UK spelling.
6. Look up any case you want to rely on in the Case law tab, then open the judgment on Find Case Law and read it yourself. UK judgments in LexDraft come from The National Archives' Find Case Law service, which only partially represents the activities of the courts and tribunals. Not every judgment or decision is included. Find Case Law does not include judgments from Scottish or Northern Irish courts or tribunals.

LexDraft does not give legal advice and does not summarise judgments. AI output can be wrong, so qualified counsel must check every redline before it goes out.

This guide is general information, not legal advice. LexDraft does not give legal advice; qualified counsel must review every draft. LexDraft is not affiliated with or endorsed by The National Archives or any court. Spotted something out of date? Email support@lexdraft.ai and we will fix it.