Family friendly day one rights

Current position

The current legal framework provides access to family-related leave, subject to certain conditions, particularly length of service requirements.

The statutory leave currently available, includes:

• Paternity leave: up to two weeks’ paternity leave can be taken by employees with 26 weeks’ service (assessed 15 weeks before the expected week of birth), subject to notice requirements
• Parental leave: up to 18 weeks’ unpaid leave can be taken by each parent before the child’s 18th birthday, but only after that parent has been continuously employed by their employer for at least one year. The parent must be an employee and have parental responsibility for the child or be registered as the child’s father on the birth register
• Bereavement leave: there is no statutory right for employees to take bereavement leave following a death, except for parents, who can take one or two weeks’ parental bereavement leave following the death of a child from 24 weeks due to pregnancy complications until the child reaches 18. Paid leave in these circumstances is a day one right.

Reforms under the Employment Rights Act 2025

The Employment Rights Act 2025 (ERA), which received Royal Assent introduces certain day one rights to support working parents in respect of paternity leave, parental leave and bereavement leave. The key changes include:

• Paternity leave: paternity leave became a day one right for eligible employees from April 2026. Under the ERA, there is also an option to take paternity leave after a period of shared parental leave
• Parental leave: the amount of unpaid parental leave remains unchanged, but access to it became a day one right for eligible employees from April 2026
• Bereavement leave: the Act introduces a new statutory right to protected bereavement leave, extending the existing day one right to a wider group, including those who experience pregnancy loss before 24 weeks. This provision is expected to come into force in 2027.

Impact

The aim of these reforms is to make entitlements more accessible and flexible for working parents. However, not all types of leave will be paid, so the financial burden on working parents will remain.

Timeline

Changes to paternity and parental leave access came into force in April 2026.

The extension of bereavement leave is not expected to be implemented until 2027, as further consultation continues.

Dismissal protection during pregnancy

Pregnant women and new mothers have enhanced rights in redundancy situations: they must be offered suitable alternative employment (if available) once they notify their employer of pregnancy or if their expected date of childbirth was within the past 18 months. It is automatically unfair for an employer to dismiss an employee by reason of redundancy during pregnancy or maternity leave without complying with this requirement.

The ERA introduces additional protection against all dismissals by making it unlawful to dismiss pregnant women, mothers on maternity leave and working mothers in the first six months after returning to work, except in prescribed circumstances. This enhanced protection is expected to extend to those who have taken other forms of family leave, such as shared parental leave and adoption leave.

Consultation on these protections closed in January 2026, with implementation expected in 2027.

Employer actions now

Employers should audit their current family-focused policies and strengthen internal processes for leave requests. Employers should continue to monitor developments as further regulations are introduced and prepare to communicate changes to managers.