HR FAQs for UK employers

The HR Doctor is the brand of Order Employment Services Limited (OES HR), a UK HR consultancy based in Stoke-on-Trent. We give owners and directors practical HR advice, contracts and policies that hold up, and a free HR Health Check that shows where your business is exposed. It is built on founder Richard Tunnicliffe’s HR experience since 2003.

We work with owner-managed UK businesses that need dependable HR without building a full HR team. That can be a small team using HR Doctor Assist from £79 plus VAT a month, or a growing business that needs contracts, policies and day-to-day advice from a senior HR consultant in one place.

Many providers sell an annual advice-line contract. We sell defined outcomes at a stated fee, such as contracts that hold up, a performance framework or a fair pay structure, with daily HR advice from a senior consultant included. You know what you are buying, and what it costs, before any work starts.

Call 01782 656134 or email hello@hrdr.co.uk, and a member of the team will pick it up. You can also use the contact page. We are based at Trent House, 234 Victoria Road, Stoke-on-Trent ST4 2LW, and support employers across the UK.

It depends on the support you need. HR Doctor Assist starts at £79 plus VAT a month. The HR Health Review is £2,000 plus VAT. Packages that include daily HR advice start at £4,000 plus VAT. Redundancy support starts at £2,000 plus VAT. Every price is published and agreed before work begins.

HR Doctor Assist is £79 a month for up to 20 employees, £149 for 21 to 50, £249 for 51 to 100 and £449 for 101 to 250, all plus VAT. Larger employers are quoted individually. Paying yearly saves 10%, and every plan includes unlimited colleague logins.

Yes. HR Doctor Assist has a 7 day free trial on every plan. A card is needed at the start, and nothing is charged if you cancel before day seven. After the trial, you pay the monthly fee for your employee band. Start your 7 day trial.

The HR Health Review is £2,000 plus VAT as standard. You answer 56 questions in around two hours and receive a Gap Analysis Report showing your score, where the gaps are and what to fix first. The fee is credited in full against a Package booked within 30 days.

Lite is £4,000 plus VAT with one outcome, Pro is £8,000 with two, and Partnership is £14,000 with three. Each includes 12 months of daily HR advice, HR Doctor Assist at the tier for your size, and an annual follow-up HR Health Review.

We do not sell time as a product. Work is priced as a defined outcome at a stated fee, agreed before it starts. If something falls outside what was agreed, it is scoped and confirmed with you first, so there are no surprises on the invoice.

The HR Health Check is a free assessment of your HR set-up that takes under a minute. You answer a few short questions and receive a Red, Amber or Green rating: Red is 0 to 49%, Amber is 50 to 79% and Green is 80 to 100%. Start the free HR Health Check.

The HR Health Check is free and takes under a minute, with a Red, Amber or Green result. The HR Health Review is £2,000 plus VAT, takes around two hours and scores you as Optimised, Vulnerable, Critical or Emergency, with a written Gap Analysis Report on what to fix first.

HR Doctor Assist is a monthly subscription giving UK employers round-the-clock HR guidance, a library of employment letters and documents, and step-by-step case handling. It is not a substitute for senior human advice on high-risk cases such as dismissals and appeals, which need a consultant’s judgement.

Daily HR advice is unlimited day-to-day support for your leaders and managers from a senior HR consultant, by phone, email or the HR Doctor Assist app. Phone and email queries are answered within four hours during working hours. It is included for 12 months rolling in every Package.

Each Package lets you choose outcomes from three Offers. Compliance and Risk covers contracts that hold up, current policies and protective documentation. Performance and People builds a structured performance framework. Reward creates a fair, defensible pay structure. Lite includes one outcome, Pro two and Partnership three.

Yes. Our contract and documentation work produces a contract that also serves as the written statement of particulars, an employee handbook and the policies behind it, all tailored to the roles you actually hold, with one round of amendments after you have reviewed it. See employment terms and conditions.

Yes. The Redundancy Guide is guided consultation for individual redundancies, under 20 at one site, from £2,000 plus VAT per redundancy round. For anything larger, speak to us before you act. You can estimate statutory pay with the free redundancy calculator.

Yes. Job evaluation and pay structures sit in our Reward Offer. They give you a documented, consistent basis for pay decisions, so you can explain and defend who is paid what and why. See job evaluation for how it works.

We do not run tribunal defence in house, and we will not promise you a named firm. If a claim is brought or looks likely, speak to us early. Richard will guide you on the right next step for your situation, so you are not deciding alone.

No law requires you to have an HR department, but you remain legally responsible for how you employ people. Many owner-managed businesses start with a diagnostic and on-call advice rather than a hire. Our guide to HR for small businesses sets out when each option makes sense.

We can typically begin working with new customers within one week of the initial consultation. For urgent matters such as disputes or compliance issues, priority onboarding starts addressing critical needs within 48 hours. HR Doctor Assist and the free HR Health Check can be started online straight away.