Reference check questions: what to ask a referee
A practical bank of questions for any role, what to add for your sector, and what to leave out.
What questions should you ask a referee?
Good reference check questions confirm the facts first: job title, employment dates and reason for leaving. Then ask about duties, reliability, conduct and whether they would re-employ the candidate. Use ratings for comparison and open questions for detail. In care, schools and healthcare, also ask about safeguarding concerns and disciplinary action. Avoid health questions before a job offer.
Core reference questions for any role
Most reference questions fall into three groups. Ten to fifteen questions is plenty for most roles: enough to be useful, short enough that referees finish.
Facts to confirm
- In what capacity do you know the candidate, and for how long?
- What were their start and end dates?
- What was their job title when they left?
- What was their reason for leaving?
- Did you manage them directly?
Performance and conduct
- What were their main duties?
- What would you say are their main strengths?
- Is there anything they could develop further?
- On a scale of 1 to 10, how would you rate their reliability and timekeeping?
- How did they work with colleagues and, where relevant, customers or the people they supported?
- Were they subject to any disciplinary action that is still current?
Closing questions
- Would you employ them again? If not, why not?
- Is there anything else we should know about their suitability for this role?
For a personal or character reference, swap the employment facts for how long and in what capacity the referee knows the candidate, then ask about honesty, reliability and how they treat others.
What to add for your sector.
Start with the core questions, then add what your sector expects. Our sector guides explain the background in more detail.
Care
Ask whether the referee has any concerns about the candidate working with vulnerable adults, and about conduct, dignity and respect in practice. See safeguarding reference questions.
Schools
Keeping children safe in education (Part 3) expects schools to ask about any safeguarding concerns or disciplinary action relating to children. See KCSIE safer recruitment.
Healthcare
Ask about clinical competence for the role, any fitness to practise concerns known to the referee, and conduct with patients. See NHS reference requirements.
Agencies and temps
Ask whether the referee would rebook the worker, which assignments they covered and how they handled short notice changes.
Warehouse and logistics
Ask about health and safety conduct, reliability on shift patterns and any workplace accidents or incidents they were involved in.
Managers
Ask about managing people, decisions under pressure, budget responsibility and how they handled performance issues in their team.
Build your questions once.
Save your question set as a template and reuse it for every candidate. Answers come back as a signed report.
- Short text, paragraph, yes/no, 1 to 10 rating, date and date range questions
- Up to 25 questions per template and up to 10 templates per account
- 5 starter templates: Basic, Standard, Comprehensive, Character and Performance
- Upload your own PDF or Word form and it becomes a template in about 20 seconds, ready for you to check
What not to ask a referee
A reference should help you judge suitability for the role, fairly. A few areas need care.
Health and sickness absence before an offer
The Equality Act 2010 restricts health-related questions before a job offer, with limited exceptions. If you need to ask about sickness absence, do it after a conditional offer, and focus on what is relevant to the role.
Protected characteristics
Do not ask about age, pregnancy, religion, disability, sexual orientation or other protected characteristics. They should play no part in the decision.
Questions the referee cannot fairly answer
Referees should give references that are true, accurate and fair. Asking for opinions on things they did not see puts them in a difficult position and gives you weak evidence. Acas has plain guidance on references for employers.
Mix the question types
Use yes/no and dates for facts, 1 to 10 ratings for comparison across candidates, and paragraph questions for examples. If you also want an email to send referees, see our reference request email, or start from the free employment reference template.
Reference question FAQs
More in the full FAQs.
How many questions should a reference include?
Ten to fifteen suits most roles. Long forms get abandoned. RefAssure templates hold up to 25 questions if your sector needs more.
Can I ask a referee why the candidate left?
Yes. Reason for leaving is a standard fact to confirm. Compare the answer with what the candidate told you and follow up any difference.
Can I ask about sickness absence?
The Equality Act 2010 restricts health questions before a job offer, so ask about absence after a conditional offer and keep it relevant to the role. Take advice if you are unsure.
Can a referee refuse to answer some questions?
Yes. Many employers have a policy of confirming dates and job title and nothing more. That still verifies employment history, and you can ask for an additional referee for the rest.
Does RefAssure have CQC or KCSIE question templates?
There are no built-in sector templates. You get 5 starter templates and add the questions your sector expects to your template once, or upload your existing form. See how it works.
Should I use open or closed questions?
Both. Closed questions and ratings make candidates easier to compare. Open questions give you examples and context that ratings miss.
Related guides
Ask the right questions, every time.
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