Ella Halsall, in our Employment Law team, explains the Government’s proposed expansion of bereavement leave rights and what the changes could mean for employers and employees.
The Government has confirmed plans to introduce wider bereavement leave rights from April 2027, including new protection for employees who experience pregnancy loss before 24 weeks. For many employers, the announcement is an important prompt to review compassionate leave policies and ensure managers are prepared to respond sensitively and lawfully.
What is changing?
At present, statutory bereavement leave is limited. Parents may be entitled to parental bereavement leave following the death of a child under 18 or a stillbirth after 24 weeks of pregnancy, but many other bereavements are dealt with through discretionary compassionate leave policies.
Under the new rules, employees will have a day one statutory right to take up to two weeks of unpaid bereavement leave if they lose a spouse or partner, parent, adult child or sibling. The right is also expected to cover a broader range of family relationships, including step, half, adoptive, kinship care and foster relationships.
The leave must be taken within 56 weeks of the bereavement (or knowledge of it) with notice to the employer during the first 8 weeks only needing to be before the employee starts work that day (or as soon as reasonably practicable). After 8 weeks the employee is required to provide their employer with one week’s notice should they wish to take unpaid bereavement leave.
Pregnancy loss before 24 weeks
A key development is that women and their partners who experience pregnancy loss before 24 weeks will also be entitled to up to two weeks’ unpaid leave. This is expected to include miscarriage, termination and IVF embryo transfer loss. The entitlement is also expected to extend to the other biological parent and intended parents in a surrogacy arrangement.
The change recognises that pregnancy loss can be a bereavement for the wider family and addresses a current gap in the law, where many employees have had to rely on sickness absence, annual leave or their employer’s discretion.
Practical points for employers
Although the detail will be set out in regulations, employers should start preparing now. This includes reviewing bereavement, compassionate leave, family leave, sickness absence and equality policies; training managers on sensitive conversations; and considering whether the organisation wishes to offer paid leave above the statutory minimum.
Employers should also think carefully about confidentiality. Bereavement and pregnancy loss are deeply personal matters, and employees should not be required to share more information than is reasonably necessary as there are no evidence requirements for this entitlement. Clear, compassionate processes can help avoid inconsistency and reduce the risk of grievances or claims.
What should employees know?
Employees should check their employer’s current policy, as many organisations already offer compassionate or paid bereavement leave. Once the new rights come into force, eligible employees will have a statutory minimum level of protection, but individual employers may offer more generous support.
Next steps
The changes are due to take effect from April 2027. Employers should use the intervening period to update policies, communicate expectations to staff and ensure that support is both legally compliant and genuinely compassionate.
For further information or legal advice, please contact law@blandy.co.uk or call 0118 951 6800.
This article is intended for the use of clients and other interested parties. The information contained in it is believed to be correct at the date of publication, but it is necessarily of a brief and general nature and should not be relied upon as a substitute for specific professional advice.
