How to write a covering letter for a job in the UK

By Sophie · Published 30 October 2026

1. Select evidence from the job description

Read the job description and any person specification alongside your CV. Mark the main duties and the essential requirements. A recruiter may use the person specification to assess applications, so check whether the employer asks you to address particular criteria.

Choose two requirements you can support with facts. For each one, note where the experience came from and what you personally did. Add an outcome only if you can explain how you know it happened. A clear description of a responsibility can still be useful when you do not have a numerical result.

Use the employer’s terminology when it accurately describes your experience. If the advert mentions diary management, identify whose appointments you arranged and how you handled changes. That gives the recruiter something concrete to compare with the duties of the vacancy.

Experience from a course or voluntary role can count too. Identify the setting, and do not claim a qualification or responsibility you do not have. If an essential requirement is missing, check the application instructions and explain any related experience honestly.

2. Decide how long a covering letter should be

Aim for one page with four short paragraphs and space between them. Keep the greeting and sign-off outside those paragraphs. If the employer specifies a word count, asks you to answer questions or provides an application form, follow those instructions instead.

Give the first paragraph a relevant starting point. Use the second for your strongest example, the third for your interest in the work and the fourth for a brief close. This arrangement helps a recruiter locate your evidence without searching through a long account of your career.

For a separate document, place your contact details at the top, followed by the date. Add the employer’s details if you have them. A heading can identify the vacancy and its reference number. In an email application, put that information in the subject line and your contact details beneath your name.

For example, Maya is an invented applicant for an administrator vacancy. Her email subject could read:

Application for Administrator, reference ADM24

Use a readable font and check the document after saving it. If a final line has moved onto a second page, shorten a paragraph or adjust the spacing. When pasting into an online form, use the preview to check that the paragraphs remain easy to read.

3. Address the employer when you have no name

Check the advert and application instructions for the person handling the vacancy. If a contact is named, use their name in the greeting and check its spelling. Their full name is a sensible choice when you do not know which title they use.

If the advert does not name anyone, you can address the hiring manager or recruitment team. Do not assume that a contact listed for enquiries will necessarily read every application. It is also reasonable to use a general greeting when you cannot establish who should receive the letter.

In this invented example, Daniel is applying for an assistant role and has found no named recipient:

Dear Hiring Manager,

For a more formal greeting, you can use “Dear Sir or Madam”. Your choice affects the conventional sign-off: a named recipient normally takes “Yours sincerely”, while “Dear Sir or Madam” takes “Yours faithfully”. With “Dear Hiring Manager”, “Kind regards” is a practical option, especially in an email.

Put your name below the sign-off. In a separate document, add your phone number and email address at the top if they are not already visible. In an email, they can go below your name. The recruiter needs a reliable way to contact you, even if those details also appear on your CV.

Once the greeting is in place, leave the reader to move straight into your first paragraph. A short, accurate salutation keeps attention on the information that follows.

4. How to write a covering letter opening

Begin with a relevant fact about your work, study or voluntary experience. Connect it to a duty in the vacancy and make the role you want clear. One or two sentences will usually give the reader enough context to continue.

If your subject line already identifies the post, there is no need to repeat the vacancy reference in the paragraph. Use the space to explain something the recruiter can find on your CV and explore in more detail later in the letter.

Priya is an invented applicant for a customer service role. Her opening could be:

In my library role, I help visitors find information and use online services. I would like to bring that experience to the Customer Service Adviser position.

The paragraph tells the recruiter what Priya does and why that experience belongs in an application involving customer enquiries. It does not need to describe every task in her current job. The next paragraph can show how she handles one of those tasks.

If you are changing careers, choose a responsibility that carries across. Someone moving from hospitality to office work might have experience answering booking queries or keeping a rota up to date. Explain the original setting so the reader can judge its relevance.

A recent graduate can start with a placement or course project instead. Name the task you completed and avoid presenting a study exercise as paid employment. Use any example only when it reflects your own experience.

5. Show your evidence in the second paragraph

Use the second paragraph to explain your strongest example in more detail. Pick a duty that matters to the employer, then describe the work you did and the context. Two to four sentences are often enough for the recruiter to see your contribution.

Say which part of a shared task was yours. If a team organised an event, you might have managed the attendee list while a colleague booked the venue. That distinction makes your account easier to discuss at interview and helps the recruiter understand the scope of your work.

Ben is an invented applicant for an office administrator role involving record keeping:

After client appointments, I update records and ask colleagues for missing details. I introduced a shared checklist so the team could see which updates were outstanding.

Ben can explain how he used the checklist and why he introduced it. He should add a figure for time saved only if he has a reliable basis for it. The account is still informative without a number.

If you have limited work experience, a course project or voluntary activity may provide a useful example. Name the setting and describe what you handled. For instance, maintaining an attendee list for a student society can show how you checked information, provided that was your actual responsibility.

Make sure the example is consistent with your CV. The letter can add detail, while the CV establishes when and where the work took place.

6. Explain your interest and close the letter

In the third paragraph, explain what interests you about the work. Read the employer’s description of the role and choose a duty you can connect to an experience or interest of your own. A specific connection gives the recruiter a reason to understand why you applied.

Aisha is an invented applicant for a role that includes helping residents book appointments:

The appointment booking work interests me because I have helped visitors complete forms in my volunteer role. I would like to use that experience to help residents arrange the appointments they need.

Aisha should use this example only if both the vacancy details and her experience are accurate. She does not need to include a long account of the organisation’s history. One relevant connection leaves space for evidence elsewhere in the letter.

Use the fourth paragraph for a brief close. You can say which part of your experience you would be happy to discuss. Include your notice period if the employer requests it or if it would help them understand your availability. For example, Tom is an invented applicant who has checked his notice period:

I would welcome the opportunity to discuss my experience of maintaining appointment records. My current notice period is four weeks.

Do not give a notice period you have not confirmed. Check your contract and circumstances, and consult GOV.UK for guidance if needed. Complete any separate availability field in the application form as well.

7. Check your covering letter before sending

Read the letter beside the job description and your CV. Check the job title, reference number and recipient, then look for details left over from another application. Each example should agree with your CV on the role you held and the work you carried out.

Read each paragraph aloud. If a colleague’s involvement is unclear, explain your own contribution. If a sentence depends on knowledge of an internal system, replace the system name with a short description of what you used it to do. The recruiter may know nothing about your previous workplace.

Follow the employer’s submission instructions. For an attachment, use a filename containing your name and the document type, then open the saved file to check its layout. For an online form, review the preview and make sure the text has not been cut off.

A personal statement may require a different structure. If the employer asks you to address selection criteria, respond to those criteria within the stated limit rather than assuming a four paragraph letter will answer every question.

If you want help preparing both documents for one vacancy, you can tailor your CV and covering letter to a job advert with CV Ajuste. Check every suggestion against the facts you have supplied and confirmed before submitting.

Keep a copy of the advert and your final application. They can help you prepare if the employer contacts you about the role.

Make your examples easy to discuss

A useful final check is to ask yourself what you would say if a recruiter asked about each example. You should be able to explain the setting, the task you handled and any outcome you included. If a claim depends on information you cannot verify, remove it or describe the work more precisely.

Look at the letter alongside your CV once more. The CV gives the reader a broader employment and education history. The letter selects details that help them understand your application for this vacancy. Where the two documents describe the same work, the dates and responsibilities should agree.

You may find templates by searching for “cover letter uk”. A template can provide a layout, but its example paragraphs cannot supply your experience. Replace them with facts you can confirm and follow any instructions in the employer’s application pack.

If the CV also needs attention, see how to tailor your CV to a job advert. Save the documents together with the vacancy details. If you are invited to interview, you can return to the examples you chose and prepare to explain them in your own words.