April 2024: A significant month of change for family-friendly rights

By Vicki Fagan, Myerson Solicitors – member of the pro-parent committee

April 2024 saw a number of reforms come into place in employment law, including changes that may benefit parents and families.

Below, we discuss a number of new rights available to working parents as well providing an update on the changes to childcare funding and child benefit.

Extended Redundancy Protection

Made on 28 February 2024 and enforced from 6 April, the Maternity Leave, Adoption Leave and Shared Parental Leave (Amendment) Regulations 2024 have extended the right to be offered a suitable alternative role in a redundancy situation to employees who are pregnant or who have returned from a period of statutory leave.

Prior to these Regulations, the right to be offered a suitable alternative vacancy over and above someone else who was being made redundant only applied to those who were identified and confirmed as being made redundant during a period of statutory leave (such as maternity leave, shared parental leave or adoption leave). Therefore, those who were made redundant after they returned from leave, were not afforded this right.

These new Regulations confirm an additional protected period (in which the employee should be offered a suitable alternative vacancy), which starts on the day on which the employee notifies their employer of their pregnancy and ends 18 months after the child’s birth or placement.

Changes to Paternity Leave

On 8 March 2024, the Paternity Leave (Amendment) Regulations 2024 came into force, introducing the changes to the statutory paternity leave scheme that the government declared in July 2023. These changes are applicable in relation to children whose anticipated week of childbirth begins after 6 April 2024, as well as children whose predicted date of placement for adoption (or entry into Great Britain for adoption) is on or after 6 April 2024. The Regulations now:

• Enable fathers and partners to take their leave and pay as two, separate periods of one week, as opposed to just in one block of one or two weeks;
• Enable fathers and partners to take their leave and pay at any time within the first year after their child’s birth or adoption, instead of within the first eight weeks;
• Shorten, in the majority of instances, the necessary notice period for each period of leave and pay;
• Enable a father or partner, who has given an initial notice, to vary any dates given if they provide 28 days’ notice of the variation, therefore allowing them to alter planned dates at a later time.

Changes to Flexible Working Applications

On 6 April 2024, the Flexible Working (amendment) Regulations 2023 came into force, which implement the Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Act 2023.

The Regulations create a number of changes to the statutory flexible working regime:

• The new Regulations remove the need to have qualifying service to make a flexible working application, making it a “day one” right. Prior to 6 April 2024, only those employees with at least 26 weeks’ service were able to submit a flexible working request.
• In making a request, an employee no longer needs to explain how they think the change will affect the employer and how this can be managed.
• Employees can now submit two requests in any twelve-month period, rather than one was previously the case.
• The time in which the employer must make a decision and notify the employee of that decision has been reduced from three months to two months (although that can be extended with agreement between the employee and the employer).
• There is a new obligation on employers to specifically consult with the employee if their request is not going to be agreed in full.

These changes can aid working parents in seeking to adjust their working pattern, hours or location of work, to help balance family commitments with their career.

It is unlawful for an employee to be treated unfairly because they have made a flexible working application or for an employer to unreasonably deal with a flexible working application.

New right to Carer’s Leave

On 6 April 2024, the Carer’s Leave Regulations 2024 came into force, which implement the Carer’s Leave Act 2023 and provide for a new right to take carer’s leave.

The right is for any employee who has a dependent with a long-term care need to take one week’s unpaid leave in a rolling twelve-month period to provide or arrange care. There are specific definitions of “dependent” and “long term care need” but these are generally quite wide.

The leave can be taken in individual days or half days, up to a block of one week and the minimum notice that the employee must give their employer for taking the leave is three days. The notice does not necessarily need to be in writing (but this is best practice) and an employee won’t be required to provide evidence in relation to the request before the employer considers granting the leave.

An employer cannot decline a request entirely, but it may postpone the leave if it considers that the business operation would be unduly disrupted if it allowed the leave to be taken at the requested time. However, an employee must be permitted to then take the leave within a month of the period initially requested.

An employee is entitled to benefit from all their terms and conditions (apart from remuneration during the period of leave) and they will be protected from detriment or dismissal because of the fact that they have taken or have sought to take carer’s leave.

Changes to Child Benefit

There have been a number of changes to Child Benefit from 6 April 2024. In particular:

• The amount of Child Benefit per year has increased to £1,331 per year for one child, an increase of £83.20.
• The amount per additional child has also increased to £881, an increase of £54.60 per year.
• Previously, parents earning above £50,000 per annum were liable to having these benefits clawed back. This limit has now increased to £60,000 per annum

Changes to childcare funding

April has also seen changes to the amount of free childcare.

From 1 April 2024, working parents of two year olds are now entitled to fifteen hours of free childcare a week during term time.

Please note that the information contained in this blog is for general information only and is not a substitute for taking specific legal advice or liaising with the appropriate government benefits agency.