Free template
Staff handbook outline template
The sections a staff handbook needs, with the questions each one must answer, so expectations are written down before they are tested.
- Supervision and ratio rules stated as non-negotiables, near the front
- Mandated reporting written as a procedure, not a sentence
- The practical sections staff actually ask about: breaks, phones, call-outs, time off
- A signature page for receipt, kept in the staff file
PDF outline with prompts, letter size. Fill it in, then have it typed and signed.
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The sections worth writing carefully
Supervision and ratios
Line of sight, counts at every transition, and the rule about never leaving a group. First section for a reason.
Phones and personal devices
Where phones live during shift and the photo rule. Vague phone policies cause the most repeat conversations.
Mandated reporting
What triggers a report, who makes it, the timeline, and that no one may talk them out of it.
Schedules, breaks, and call-outs
Shift times, how breaks are covered, and exactly who to call at 6am when they are sick.
Guidance and discipline of children
Approved approaches, and the practices that end employment. Written plainly, with examples.
Time off and reviews
Accrual, request notice, holidays, and when reviews happen so nobody wonders.
A handbook that reduces hard conversations
Written expectations are what let you correct a problem without it feeling personal. The document is doing its job when you can point at a page instead of arguing.
Put safety rules first and make them absolute. Supervision, sleep, allergies, and reporting. No hedging language in these sections.
Get a signed receipt. One page, dated, in the staff file. It is what makes the rest enforceable.
Review it with the team once a year. Twenty minutes at a staff meeting, and note what changed. Handbooks nobody discusses get ignored.
Staff handbooks, answered
Is a staff handbook required?
Some policies are required to be written and staff-acknowledged, and which ones depends on your state. Employment law adds more, so have an employment attorney review yours.
Is a handbook an employment contract?
It is generally not intended to be, and many handbooks say so explicitly. Wording here matters, which is why a review is worth it.
How do we handle policy changes?
Announce them, hand out the revised section, and collect a new acknowledgment for anything significant.
Should substitutes get one?
Give them a short version covering supervision, emergencies, allergies, and reporting, and have them sign for it.
One place staff check instead of asking
Schedules, announcements, and room information live in the app, so the answer to what happens today is the same for everyone.