Andy Burnham confirms main new vacation depart regulation change from April 2027
Prime Minister Andy Burnham has confirmed a new UK pregnancy loss bereavement leave law coming into effect from April 2027, giving women and their partners up to two weeks’ unpaid leave to grieve
It starts in April 2027(Image: Jeff J Mitchell, Getty Images)
Prime Minister Andy Burnham has announced a new rule for time off work, set to come into effect from April 2027. From this date, women and their partners who suffer pregnancy loss at any stage will be entitled to up to two weeks of unpaid leave to mourn.
The changes will apply to those who experience miscarriage, terminations or unsuccessful IVF embryo transfers. Currently, there is no legal right to bereavement in these situations, despite it being estimated that one in five women in the UK endure a miscarriage during their lifetime.
Under current regulations, parental bereavement leave and pay are only available to employees if they or their partner lose a child up to the age of 18 or have a stillbirth after 24 weeks of pregnancy. However, from April, the right to time off will extend to pregnancy loss at any stage.
Women and their partners who experience pregnancy loss will gain new rights from April 2027(Image: Getty)
The government has stated that no one will be asked or required to provide evidence of their loss, helping to safeguard employee’s privacy during a distressing period. Mr Burnham confirmed the new rights this week during Baby Loss Awareness Week, expressing his desire to “do more to help”, reports the Express.
In a post on LinkedIn, the PM wrote: “During Baby Loss Awareness Week, I want to recognise the heartbreak that baby and pregnancy loss causes parents and families across the UK. I will be thinking of everyone who has suffered such a devastating loss this week. And I want to do more to help.
“Right now, if you lose a pregnancy before 24 weeks, you have no legal right to bereavement leave. I’m changing that. From April, women and their partners will be entitled to two weeks leave following any pregnancy loss. I know this isn’t perfect and I want to do more.
“But this first step will establish a basic right that everyone can rely on. It is a legal minimum, and I urge employers to go further, including offering paid leave where they can.”
The government has announced that this new entitlement to up to two weeks off work following a pregnancy loss will also extend to partners, the other biological parent, or intended parents in a surrogacy arrangement, acknowledging legally that pregnancy loss impacts the entire family.
From April, the right to bereavement leave will also be extended to workers who lose a spouse or partner, parent, adult child or sibling, as well as including step, half, adoptive, kinship care and foster relationships.
The leave can be taken flexibly within 56 weeks of the loss and as single days rather than a full block, allowing individuals to grieve in a way that suits them. Those taking leave within the first eight weeks after a bereavement will only need to notify their employer as soon as is reasonably practicable, rather than in advance.
Employees taking bereavement leave will be protected from “detriment or dismissal” for exercising their statutory right to leave. The government is also conducting a broader, thorough review of the parental leave and pay system, including areas such as ‘Hugh’s Law’ and the rights of parents with terminally ill children.
Minister for the Future of Work, Kate Dearden, stated: “No one should have to fight for time to grieve. These changes back people going through some of the hardest moments of life, whoever they are and wherever they work. I want to thank the campaigners, whose courage and testimonies, have made this change happen.”
