---
title: Policies and acknowledgements
canonical_url: https://hrhive.co.uk/product/policies/
content_type: product
summary: Upload or write a policy, choose who it applies to, and HRHive asks each person to acknowledge receipt, online or on paper. Every version is kept, outstanding acknowledgements show on Home, and the register can be printed.
audiences:
  - employer
  - adviser
  - employee
topic: hr-policies
jurisdiction: uk
status: published
last_updated: 2026-10-05
---

# Policies, versions and a record of who has read them

> Upload or write a policy, choose who it applies to, and HRHive asks each person to acknowledge receipt, online or on paper. Every version is kept, outstanding acknowledgements show on Home, and the register can be printed.

## What problem does this solve?

The handbook is a PDF on a shared drive, and people were asked to read it once. When a policy changes, nobody can say who has seen the new version. When someone asks "did you give me this?", you cannot show it. Chasing signatures by email takes longer than writing the policy did.

## What HRHive does

- Keeps each policy as a series of versions. Upload a document (PDF, Word, OpenDocument or text) or write the text, and give the version a label, an effective date, an optional review date and a summary of what has changed.
- Lets you choose who a version applies to: everyone, a department, a location, a position or selected people.
- Asks each person to acknowledge receipt, online or on paper, and records who did, when and how.
- Archives the previous version when you publish a new one. It stays readable, and anyone who had not yet acknowledged it is asked about the new version instead.
- Asks new employees to acknowledge the policies that apply to them when they become active. This is on by default, and onboarding includes the same step.
- Shows what is outstanding. Home says how many employees have not acknowledged a policy, and which one.
- Reminds you when a review date is coming up.
- Prints the acknowledgement register, with a signature column if you collect signatures on paper, and records paper acknowledgements from the signed register.
- Offers a list of common policy names to start from, such as Employee Handbook, Holiday Policy and Sickness Policy.

> **Receipt, not agreement**
>
> An acknowledgement confirms that a person has received and read a policy. It does not make the policy part of anyone's contract, and HRHive says so on the acknowledgement screen. To change contractual terms, record a change of terms under Contracts and statements.

> **HRHive does not write your policies**
>
> The list of policy names is only a starting point. HRHive does not write policies, or check that they are lawful or up to date. It holds the policy you give it, shows who has read it and keeps the history.

## How it works

1. **Add the policy.** Give it a name, such as Health & Safety, and a category.
2. **Publish a version.** Upload the document or write the text. Set the effective date, an optional review date and what has changed. Say who it applies to. Keep "People must acknowledge receipt" ticked unless the policy is only for reference.
3. **People are asked.** Each person gets an email with a secure link, and the request appears on their portal Home. By default it is due in 14 days. They read the policy and confirm they have received and read it.
4. **Track and chase.** The "Who has read it" list shows each person's date, whether it was online or on paper, or that they are outstanding. The Remind outstanding button asks anyone who has not yet been asked.
5. **Record paper acknowledgements.** If you collect signatures on a printed register, tick the people who signed, enter the date and attach a scan.
6. **Review on time.** A review date puts the policy in your reminders, and "Review due" appears against it on the list.

## What you see

The Policies page lists each policy with its category, current version, effective date and how many people have acknowledged it, with a badge when a draft version is waiting or a review is due. Open a policy to see who has read it, its versions and what changed in each. On a person's record, the Policies tab shows the policies that need acknowledging and whether they have acknowledged each one.

**Policies** — Company policies, who they apply to and who has read them.

- Employee Handbook, General, version 4.0 — 10 of 10 acknowledged (1 Jan 2026)
- Health & Safety, Health & Safety, version 3.0 — 8 of 10 acknowledged (1 Mar 2026)
- Data Protection, IT & Data, version 2.1 — 9 of 10 acknowledged (1 Jun 2026)
- Sickness Policy, Leave & Absence, version 1.0 — 10 of 10 acknowledged (1 Jan 2026)

2 employees have not acknowledged the Health & Safety (v3.0)

## The record it creates

Each acknowledgement is stored against the person and the version, with the date and whether it was made online or on paper. Acknowledgements are added, never overwritten, so earlier ones stay on file when a policy changes. Older versions stay readable. The acknowledgement register can be printed, for one policy or for all of them, and each acknowledgement goes on the person's timeline. A person's acknowledgements are a section of their personnel file.

_Example output (demo data): an Employee Record: personal details, employment terms, documents held, right to work status and history in one printable file._

## Who can do what

HR decides which policies exist and who they apply to. Managers can see how their own team is doing, and employees see only what applies to them.

| Role | What they can do |
| --- | --- |
| Owner, admin and HR | Add policies, publish new versions, choose who a policy applies to, ask for acknowledgements, record paper acknowledgements, print the register and archive a policy. |
| Manager | Read every policy, and see and print the acknowledgement register for the people on their team. |
| Employee | Read the policies that apply to them and acknowledge receipt online. |
| Payroll / Finance and Compliance | Have no access to policies. |
| Auditor (read only) | Read policies and the acknowledgement register without changing anything. |
| Adviser invited into the organisation | Works with whichever role you give them. An HR consultant given the HR role can publish policies and chase acknowledgements as HR can. |

## What happens next

Outstanding acknowledgements appear on Home for HR and are reported in the Policy acknowledgement status report. People who have not acknowledged are reminded as the due date approaches. When you archive a policy, outstanding requests are withdrawn and past acknowledgements are kept. Employees do all of this from the [employee portal](https://hrhive.co.uk/product/employee-self-service/), and new starters meet it during [onboarding](https://hrhive.co.uk/product/onboarding/).

## Frequently asked questions

### Does acknowledging a policy make it part of someone's contract?

HRHive records receipt, not agreement. The acknowledgement screen says it is an acknowledgement of receipt that does not change a contract, and the screen where you publish a policy says the same. To change contractual terms, record a change of terms instead. Ask your own adviser how this applies to your policies.

### Can people acknowledge on paper?

Yes. Print the acknowledgement register with a signature column, collect signatures, then record the paper acknowledgements in HRHive: tick the people who signed, enter the date and attach a scan if you want to. Each one is recorded as a paper acknowledgement.

### What happens when I publish a new version?

The previous version is archived but stays readable. Requests that were still outstanding for it are replaced by requests for the new one, and everyone it applies to is asked to read it, with your summary of what has changed. Earlier acknowledgements are kept.

## About this page

- Last updated: 5 October 2026

## Related

**In HRHive**

- [Employee self-service](https://hrhive.co.uk/product/employee-self-service/)
- [Onboarding new starters with one link](https://hrhive.co.uk/product/onboarding/)
- [Contracts, written statements and signing](https://hrhive.co.uk/product/contracts/)
- [Reports and exports](https://hrhive.co.uk/product/reporting/)
- [Reminders and expiry dates](https://hrhive.co.uk/product/reminders/)

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