# EMPLOYEE REFERENCES POLICY
Date: 7 September 2031
Parties: Cedarline Analytics Ltd and its employees
## 1. Purpose and parties
Cedarline Analytics Ltd of 22 Meridian Square, Reading RG1 3HL, applies this policy from 7 September 2031 to its 142 employees and former employees. People Director Oliver Grant is the sole authorised signatory, with HR Adviser Leila Morgan permitted to prepare a response for his approval. A line manager must not send an independent reference from a Cedarline account.
## 2. Facts, scope and terms
The standard outgoing reference confirms the employee's name, job title, employment start date, employment end date and whether the person was dismissed for gross misconduct. It will state that the information is factual and is not a recommendation. Cedarline will include salary only where the former employee has given written consent, and will provide an enhanced responsibility summary only for a role agreed in writing before the request.
## 3. Process and responsibilities
A request must be sent to references@cedarline.co.uk with the former employee's signed authority, the requester's identity, the destination organisation and the proposed response deadline. Oliver will check the personnel record against the request, correct an obvious clerical error before sending, and decline a request that seeks an unverified opinion. A settlement agreement's agreed wording, dated 18 June 2031 for former employee Marcus Hill, overrides the standard wording for Marcus only.
## 4. Evidence, records and safeguards
An incoming reference may be collected only from a referee nominated by a candidate or expressly approved by them. Recruitment Manager Saira Patel will store it securely, use it only for the recruitment decision and not disclose it to another employer. Records, including notes of a telephone call, will be retained for 6 months after the recruitment decision and then securely deleted unless a legal hold or a documented complaint requires longer retention.
## 5. Review, escalation and outcome
If an incoming reference raises a material concern, Saira will pause the decision, record the concern without exaggeration, and tell the candidate the substance of it within 5 working days. The candidate will have 7 working days to respond or supply contrary evidence. The decision-maker will consider the response independently; withdrawal of an offer requires written reasons and approval from Oliver Grant, and must not be based solely on an unexplained protected characteristic.
## 6. Reservations and practical protections
Cedarline will process reference data under UK GDPR, keep access on a need-to-know basis and answer a subject access request in accordance with applicable law. A reference must be honest, accurate, supportable and proportionate. Staff must not include malicious statements, speculative health information or confidential information about a third party. Any suspected disclosure error must be reported to the Data Protection Lead within 24 hours.
## 7. England and Wales law and completion
The policy is reviewed on 7 September 2032 by Oliver Grant and the Data Protection Lead. A complaint about an outgoing reference should be made within 30 days of receipt; Cedarline will acknowledge it within 3 working days and respond within 20 working days. This fictional policy is governed by England and Wales law, does not promise a positive reference, and preserves any binding wording or legal duty that applies to a particular employee.