Chairing a disciplinary, grievance or appeal hearing is one of the most legally exposed roles in any organisation. The outcome letter will be scrutinised by an Employment Tribunal. An untrained chair is not just a liability to themselves but to the organisation that appointed them. This intensive one-day masterclass gives your managers and HR professionals the legal knowledge, analytical frameworks and practical skills to chair hearings fairly, confidently and defensibly — delivered at your premises, in your context, on your terms.

Enquire About In-House Delivery

Discuss Your Requirements

Why In-House Training

Sending individuals to an open course works for some organisations. For others, in-house delivery is the more practical and cost-effective choice. Here is why organisations choose the in-house option.

• Your policies, your procedures, your cases. The open course is built around real cases drawn from Robin’s 25 years of practice. The in-house course can use your own case types, your own policies, and your own disciplinary or grievance framework as the working material. Your delegates will leave knowing how the training applies to the work they actually do.
• The whole team trained on the same day. Rather than sending individuals to open courses at different times and getting inconsistent results, in-house delivery gives your entire team a shared foundation, a common language, and a consistent standard on the same day.
• No travel time or delegate absence beyond the training day. Delegates attend at your premises or a nearby venue you choose, with no day of travel before or after.
• Cost-effective at scale. At £4,990 + VAT for up to 12 delegates, the in-house day works out at £416 per delegate for a full team of 12 — significantly less than the open course rate, and with content tailored specifically to your organisation.
• Preparation included. The price covers Robin’s preparation time. There are no hidden extras for pre-course reading, customisation discussions, or materials development.

Customisation

The standard in-house programme covers the same comprehensive content as the open course. If your organisation has specific requirements — particular policies to focus on, sector-specific considerations, case types that arise regularly in your workplace, or a different emphasis or running order — the content can be adapted.

Customisation is agreed in advance. Robin will discuss what changes you need, confirm what is possible within a standard day’s programme, and agree whether any significant departures from the standard content affect the price. In most cases they do not. More substantial redesign of the programme may be priced separately, and this will always be agreed before any commitment is made.

If you are unsure whether your requirements need customisation or whether the standard programme would suit you well, contact Robin directly for a no-obligation conversation.

Who Is This For

This in-house masterclass is designed for:

• Managers and senior managers appointed to chair first-stage or appeal hearings who have received little or no formal training for the role
• HR professionals and HR business partners who chair, advise on, or oversee disciplinary, grievance and appeal hearings
• In-house legal teams who advise on hearing procedure and want a deeper understanding of how Tribunals assess decision-making
• Organisations that have had a hearing decision challenged or overturned and want to raise the standard across their decision-makers
• Independent panel members and external chairs who want to sharpen their practice

Why This Masterclass

The Employment Tribunal does not ask whether a chair reached the right decision. It asks whether the decision was within the range of reasonable responses available to a reasonable employer, reached through a fair process. A great many hearing decisions fail that test — not because chairs are careless, but because they have never been taught the disciplines that make a decision defensible.

The most common cause of unfair dismissal findings is not misconduct that never happened. It is a procedurally flawed hearing chaired by someone appointed because of their seniority rather than their skill. In Dr M Thomson v Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, an Employment Tribunal found a dismissal unfair partly because the chair had never chaired a hearing before and had no relevant training.

This masterclass is built on Judgecraft: Independent Chair’s Handbook, written by a practising barrister who sits as a tribunal judge. Delivered in-house, the day can be anchored to your own disciplinary and grievance procedure, your sector’s particular requirements, and the types of cases your chairs encounter. One day. The complete skill set for the role.

Programme

Morning — Legal Foundations and Preparation

• The legal framework: Employment Rights Act 1996, ACAS Code, and natural justice
• The range of reasonable responses test: what it means, how Tribunals apply it, and what it demands of chairs
• Common reasons hearing decisions fail at Tribunal: a review of real cases
• Reading the investigation report critically: scrutinising it as evidence rather than adopting its conclusions
• Pre-hearing preparation: the Case Map, issue identification, and building a structured analytical framework
• Panels vs single decision-makers: managing the dynamics and responsibilities of each
• Managing conflicts of interest, perceived bias, and independence before the hearing begins
• The right to be accompanied: what companions can and cannot do, and how to manage their involvement

Illustrated throughout with real Employment Tribunal cases and, where agreed in advance, scenarios drawn from your own organisation’s context.

Afternoon — Conducting the Hearing and Reaching the Decision

• Setting the tone: opening a hearing correctly and what it communicates to all parties
• Case management: keeping proceedings focused, managing time, and handling applications
• Adjournments: when to grant them, when to refuse, and how to record the decision
• Proceeding in absence: the correct approach and the risk of getting it wrong
• Vulnerability and special measures: adjustments as a requirement of fairness, not a concession
• Evidence testing during the hearing: internal consistency, external consistency, and what the evidence actually proves
• Credibility assessment: the structured approach and the common errors that undermine defensible decisions
• Bias control: recognising and managing the biases most likely to affect hearing chairs
• Deliberation: structured reasoning from evidence to findings to decision
• Selecting the sanction: proportionality, consistency, mitigation, and the range of reasonable responses
• Writing the outcome letter: structure, reasoning, language, and the errors that create Tribunal vulnerability
• Appeal hearings: the fresh hearing vs review distinction and how to approach each correctly

Interactive exercises and discussion throughout the day, using real scenarios relevant to your organisation.

About Your Trainer

Robin Somerville LLM is a practising barrister, CEDR Accredited Mediator, and one of the UK’s most experienced independent hearing chairs. He has chaired hundreds of disciplinary, grievance and appeal hearings across 25 years, including many involving CEOs, directors and senior managers in complex and sensitive cases. He is also a judicial appointee, sitting as a tribunal judge and county court judge, which means he sees the consequences of flawed hearing processes from both sides. He is the author of Judgecraft: Independent Chair’s Handbook and two further published books on investigations and mediations.

Endorsements

“Decision-making sits at the heart of justice, fairness, and organisational integrity. Judgecraft provides a structured approach to analysing evidence, assessing credibility, managing uncertainty, and constructing clear, reasoned decisions.”

From the foreword to Judgecraft: Independent Chair’s Handbook

“A clear and practical guide for how to conduct workplace investigations and to avoid the pitfalls from a highly experienced investigator.”

Jeffrey Jupp KC, Barrister, 7 Bedford Row Chambers

Enquire or Book

To discuss in-house delivery of the Hearing Chair: In-House Practitioner-Led Masterclass for your organisation, contact Robin directly. He is happy to have an initial no-obligation conversation about your requirements, answer questions about the content, and confirm availability for your preferred dates.

robin@robinsomerville.co.uk    |    020 8242 4106    |    www.robinsomerville.co.uk

All in-house bookings are confirmed in writing with a clear statement of the agreed programme, dates, location, delegate numbers, and price before any commitment is required.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do delegates need experience as a hearing chair to attend?

No. The masterclass is designed to be useful whether delegates are chairing their first hearing or looking to sharpen a practice developed over many years.

What is included in the price?

The price of £4,990 + VAT covers up to 12 delegates, the full day’s training, all course materials, a copy of Judgecraft: Independent Chair’s Handbook per delegate (pre-order), and Robin’s preparation time. Additional delegates are charged at £50 + VAT per person.

Does this cover grievance hearings and appeals as well as disciplinary hearings?

Yes. The masterclass covers disciplinary hearings, grievance hearings, and appeal hearings. Specific sessions address the differences between first-stage hearings and appeals.

Is there a minimum number of delegates?

No. Robin will deliver the training for any number of delegates your organisation wishes to include.

Can the content be tailored to our organisation?

Yes. The programme can be adapted to your own disciplinary and grievance procedure, your sector context, and the types of cases your chairs encounter. Customisation is discussed and agreed in advance and is included in the standard price in most cases.

Where is the training delivered?

At your premises, or at an off-site venue of your choice and arrangement. Travel costs outside London may apply and will be agreed in advance.

Does this course qualify for CPD?

Yes. The masterclass qualifies for CPD hours and certificates of attendance will be provided. Please check with your professional body regarding recognition.

What is the cancellation policy?

Cancellation terms will be confirmed in writing when the booking is agreed. Please see the booking terms and conditions for full details.