Privacy and Staff Appraisals

What is a staff appraisal?

A staff appraisal is a formal meeting between an employee and their manager to review how well someone has been doing their job over a set period. Many organisations hold appraisals once a year, though some prefer every six months. Others have moved towards more frequent check-ins as part of ongoing performance management.

These meetings serve several purposes. They allow both parties to look back at previously agreed targets and discuss whether they have been met. They also provide space to set new goals for the coming period. Ideally, the meeting provides an opportunity for both parties to raise concerns or ask questions about the working relationship.

Because appraisals involve detailed discussions about someone's work, conduct and sometimes personal circumstances, the records created during this process can be sensitive. It falls to employers to manage and protect these records properly.

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Types of staff appraisal

There are several common formats for workplace appraisals:

• Standard appraisals: a manager meets with an employee to discuss their performance directly
• 360 degree appraisals: feedback is gathered from multiple sources, which may include colleagues, other managers and the employee themselves, giving a broader picture of someone's contribution
• Self assessment appraisals: the employee provides their own evaluation of their work before or during the meeting
• Probationary reviews: these take place during an employee's probation period to assess whether they are suited to the role
• Continuous feedback: some workplaces now use ongoing appraisal systems with regular informal reviews rather than a single annual meeting

Each type generates personal information about the employee. The format your employer uses will often depend on the size of the organisation, the nature of your role, and whether teams work remotely or in person.

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What gets recorded and how

Appraisals are usually held in private, but the conversation itself is rarely transcribed word for word. Instead, most employers use a standard form to capture the main points. This form gives the meeting a clear structure and allows managers to compare progress across different team members over time.

Forms can be completed in different ways. Some managers fill them in before the meeting based on their observations and any targets previously agreed. Others prefer to complete the form during or after the discussion, reflecting what was said in the meeting itself. Either approach is acceptable, though the timing can affect how the conversation flows.

The information recorded will often include ratings or comments on specific areas of performance, agreed objectives for the next period, and any training or support the employee might need. Some forms also include space for the employee to add their own comments or to note any disagreements with the manager's assessment.

Privacy and data protection

Appraisal records are classed as personal data under UK data protection law. This means employers must handle them in line with the UK General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018. In practice, this requires organisations to store appraisal records securely, limit who can access them, and keep them only for as long as necessary.

Employees have the right to request copies of their own appraisal records through a subject access request. Employers must usually respond within one month, though this can be extended by a further two months if the request is complex or if multiple requests have been made. If you believe your records have been handled improperly or shared without good reason, you can raise a complaint with your employer in the first instance. If that does not resolve the matter, you may contact the Information Commissioner's Office, which oversees data protection in the UK.

It is worth noting that comments made during an appraisal and recorded on the form may later be seen by the employee. This tends to encourage fair and measured feedback.

For guidance on your rights regarding personal data at work, GOV.UK provides information on data protection and the ICO website offers detailed advice for both employees and employers.

The Next Step

Now that you have read through the advice above, you might want to put it into practice. Our Workplace Privacy Checker lets you describe what your employer is monitoring or asking for and find out whether it is lawful under UK privacy and data protection law. Try it now →