Meaningful Work· Medium risk

Reference request letter

Draft a compliant reference request email.

When to use this prompt

Reach for this prompt when you need to draft a compliant reference request email. It's designed for HR lead. Typically used within Recruitment work.

Draft with AI, then have a colleague verify facts and tone before use.

How to use it

1
Gather your inputs
Have your local context, audience and goal to hand.
2
Fill in the template
Copy the template below and replace every bracketed placeholder with real, local context. Keep names and safeguarding details out.
3
Run it in your AI tool
Paste into your preferred AI assistant. Ask a follow-up if the output misses your association's tone or context.
4
Review with the checklist
Work through the human-review checklist below before you send, publish or act on the output.

Prefer a guided flow? Adapt with the guided builder — it fills placeholders from your association profile.

Prompt template

Draft a reference request email to {REFEREE} about {CANDIDATE} for the role of {ROLE}. Ask about: dates of employment, role and responsibilities, safeguarding concerns, reasons for leaving, and reliability. Comply with UK/EU data-protection norms; do not ask about protected characteristics.

Replace bracketed placeholders with real context. Never paste identifying details about children, health or safeguarding cases.

Worked example

REFEREE: [name] · CANDIDATE: [name] · ROLE: Sessional Worker

Why this prompt works

Covers safeguarding without straying into discriminatory ground.

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Adapt with the guided builder