As part of the government’s Make Work Pay plan, we have responded to this consultation on leave for bereavement including pregnancy loss.
- We support the introduction of bereavement leave, including for pregnancy loss.
- It would be helpful to align the bereavement leave period with the current entitlement under Jack’s Law - Parental Bereavement Leave, so a period of 2 weeks. This would provide consistency across the entitlements and help to support wellbeing and ensure that employees are not forced to return to work too early – often at one of the most difficult times of their lives.
- When it comes to notice requirements, we would recommend following the provision set out in Jack’s Law -Parental Bereavement Leave for consistency for employers and flexibility for employees. This includes notice requirements that depend on how soon after a bereavement the employee intends to take leave. For leave taken within eight weeks of a death, notice must be given before the start of the working day on which they intend to take leave. After eight weeks, employees are required to give one week of notice before a block of leave begins. This two-tier approach allows employees to take time off with same-day notice in the weeks immediately following the bereavement, while also giving employers time to plan for the absence of bereaved staff when leave is taken later.
- In relation to evidence - our HR Member roundtables were broadly split in opinion – some felt that evidence should not be required but that an employer should have the right to request evidence if they felt it was necessary. Others felt that it would be more appropriate for employees to self-declare that they are eligible to take bereavement leave and the reason they are taking leave is due to a bereavement or pregnancy loss.
- Our broader recommendations to the Government on supporting employers to implement the new bereavement leave and support employees, includes:
- The sharing of good practice guidance and toolkits by the Department would be helpful to support employers in implementing the new statutory bereavement leave and in building a broader culture of understanding and support in workplaces.
- Case studies across different sized organisations and sectors can also be helpful resources for organisations and provide learning and principles around how they might develop a compassionate approach to bereavement support.
- Encouraging organisations to signpost to supportive services, organisations and charities.
- Further research: it should be noted that more evidence to demonstrate the effectiveness of different workplace approaches to bereavement support is also needed to inform policy and practice as called for by various academics including Barclay and Kang, 2019; Bergeron, 2023; Thompson and Bevan, 2015; Bergeron, 2025.
