Bereavement and compassionate leave

The only bereavement leave set out in law is for parents. If your child dies before the age of 18, or your baby is stillborn after 24 weeks of pregnancy, you are entitled to 2 weeks of parental bereavement leave, with Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay of £194.32 a week (or 90 per cent of your earnings, if lower) for those who qualify. For the death of anyone else, what you get depends on your employer’s compassionate leave policy, plus the unpaid right to time off for dependants.

Parental bereavement leave

Parental bereavement leave is a day-one right for employees. It applies to parents, including adoptive parents, intended parents in a surrogacy arrangement, foster parents in some circumstances, and partners of the child’s parent who live with the child.

You can take the 2 weeks together or as two separate weeks. They do not have to be taken straight away. Parents often keep some of the leave for later, such as the first anniversary. Gov.uk sets out how long after the death the leave can be taken and the notice rules, which are deliberately light: in the first weeks after the death you can tell your employer on the day, without writing anything down.

If you have lost more than one child, you get 2 weeks for each child.

Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay

Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay (SPBP) is paid at the lower of £194.32 a week or 90 per cent of your average weekly earnings. Unlike the leave, the pay has conditions. You need to have worked for your employer for a qualifying period and earn at least the lower earnings limit, which is £129 a week for 2026/27. The gov.uk page gives the detail.

Many public sector employers pay more, often at full pay for the parental bereavement weeks. NHS, council and school policies usually set this out alongside their compassionate leave terms.

After a stillbirth or a death in the first year

After a stillbirth after 24 weeks of pregnancy, the mother is still entitled to maternity leave and, if she qualifies, Statutory Maternity Pay, as well as parental bereavement leave. The partner can take paternity leave too. See maternity leave and pay for the statutory figures.

Since 6 April 2026, a partner whose child’s mother or primary adopter dies in the first year can take Bereaved Partners’ Paternity Leave of up to 52 weeks. This allows the surviving parent to care for the baby without relying on the shorter paternity leave.

Pregnancy loss before 24 weeks is not covered by statutory parental bereavement leave. The Employment Rights Act 2025 provides for a wider bereavement leave right, including pregnancy loss, but the government’s timetable puts this in 2027 with no date set. Our guide to the Employment Rights Act 2025 tracks when each change arrives.

Compassionate leave for other bereavements

When a partner, parent, sibling or close friend dies, there is no statutory right to paid bereavement leave at the moment. What the law does give you is time off for dependants: reasonable unpaid time off to deal with the death of a dependant, including arranging and attending the funeral. A dependant includes your spouse or partner, child, parent, someone who lives with you as family, and someone who relied on you.

Most public sector employers go further with a compassionate or special leave policy. These commonly give a set number of paid days for the death of a close relative, with discretion for managers to give more, for example for travel abroad for a funeral or where you are the executor. The number of days varies between employers and is not fixed nationally. Look at your trust, council, school or department policy, which is usually on the intranet.

Going back to work

A phased return, a temporary change of duties or a period of reduced hours can help, and you can ask for flexible working from your first day. If you work in a patient-facing or child-facing role, it is reasonable to ask your manager for time away from particular situations for a while.

Most public sector employers offer an employee assistance programme with free, confidential counselling, and NHS staff have extra wellbeing services. If you feel your employer is not following its policy, talk to HR or your union rep, and ACAS can advise on your rights.