Statutory right to bereavement leave

Implementation date: Not expected before 2026

The Employment Rights Bill introduces a statutory right to bereavement leave.

Under the Bill, the current right to parental bereavement leave will be extended, so bereavement leave is not limited to parents who have lost a child. Regulations will specify the relationships that will be covered by the right. 

It is not yet known when this measure will come into force. In its Next Steps to Make Work Pay policy paper, the Government said it expects to begin consulting in 2025 on the various measures covered in the Bill and that it anticipates that "the majority of reforms will take effect no earlier than 2026".