What new rights does this give me as a carer?
The Flexible Working Act came into effect on 6 April 2024 and covers employees in England, Wales and Scotland. In Northern Ireland, slightly different rules apply – read more.
If you're managing caring alongside paid employment, this law has improved your rights in the following ways:
- As an employee, you are entitled to request a flexible working arrangement from day one of your employment.
- You can make two statutory flexible working requests in any 12-month period (previously you could only make one).
- Employers are now required to consult with the employee before rejecting any flexible working request.
- As the employee, you are no longer required to explain what effect, if any, the change applied for would have on the employer and how that effect might be addressed.
Questions and answers
Before approaching your employer, you may wish to seek some clarity on the facts about the new law. To help you find the information you're looking for, we have broken these down into three sections:
1/ The basics, 2/ Timings and 3/ Other concerns.
1/ The basics
Currently covering England, Wales and Scotland, this law came into force on 6 April 2024.
It means that rather than having to wait 26 weeks (or six months) before making a flexible working request, you can now make the request from day one of employment.
There are further ways in which the law improves your rights and choice as an employee. See the tabs below.
These days, 'flexible working' has become something of an umbrella term and covers many aspects of working, some of which you may not have considered. There are different ways in which an employer could support you with any caring needs you have on an ongoing basis. Here is a summary to explain different examples of flexible working (the names may sometimes differ):
- Flexi-time – employees may be required to work within set times but outside of these 'core hours' have some flexibility in how they work their hours.
- Working from home or remote working – where employees spend part or all of their working week away from the workplace. Home-working is just one option.
- Hybrid working – where employees split their time between the workplace and remote working.
- Job sharing – usually two employees share the work normally done by one person.
- Part-time working – employees might work shorter days or fewer days in a week.
- Term-time working – employees don’t work during school holidays and either take paid or unpaid leave or their salary is calculated pro-rata over the whole year.
- Staggered hours – employees have various starting and finishing times meaning that goods and services are available outside traditional working hours.
- Compressed hours – employees work their total hours over fewer working days eg, a 10-day fortnight is compressed into a nine-day fortnight.
- Mealtime flex – employees take their lunch break when it suits them during the work day. Some employees may choose to take a shorter break instead and leave work earlier.
- Annualised hours – employees work a specified number of hours over the year but have some flexibility about when they work. These employees usually have a set number of ‘core’ hours they work each week and work the remainder of their hours flexibly.
As an employee, you will have the right to request a change to:
- the number of hours you work
- when you start or finish work
- the days you work
- where you work.
If you require changes to the way you work to better support someone or several people you're looking after in the long term, we would encourage you to let your employer know what you would like to change as soon as possible.
Employers must manage these requests 'in a reasonable manner'. If they are unable to meet the request you make, they must now consult with you. Employers can only reject the request for eight business reasons. These are listed on this page: Flexible working: After the application - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
The law also states that an employer can’t request that an employee supplies evidence of their circumstances, so it is your choice to identify whether you are caring when requesting a flexible working arrangement to suit your needs.
However, it may help if you include as much information as possible, including the potential impact of not being able to work flexibly.
You can find a standard template form on the GOV.UK website to help you make an application, or you can write to or email them.
Here's a checklist:
- Include the date and reasons why you would like to change your pattern of work.
- Give the dates of the desired start times and be specific about what you would like to change.
- State that this is a statutory request.
- Refer to any previous application made including dates (checking that you have not made more than two requests in the last 12 months).
- Although this is not a requirement, it might be helpful to explain why you feel the changes will be beneficial for both you and the organisation.
For an overview of your working rights if you're managing paid employment alongside a caring role, you may find it helpful to read our factsheet: Your rights in work.
2/ Timings
You can apply for a different flexible working arrangement to your contract from the first day of your employment. It can be referred to as 'making a statutory application'. You can refer your employer to this link if necessary: gov.uk/flexible-working/applying-for-flexible-working
Once you've made a formal application for a flexible working arrangement, the law states that your employer must make a decision within two months of the request (or longer if this has been agreed with the employer).
No later than 28 days after the request was approved, the employer must write to the employee with the agreed start date of the new arrangement and a statement of the agreed changes.
The employee's contract also needs to be updated to reflect the new terms and conditions.
The new law takes into account that people's circumstances may change, so it is now a statutory right to make up to two flexible working requests in any 12 month period.
Alternative information about taking time off for emergencies is here: Taking time off when needed | Carers UK
3/ Other concerns
Your employer can reject your request for flexible working, but they must have discussed the request with you before refusing it.
There are eight possible reasons for why they may have a legitimate case for turning down your request and these can be found here:
Flexible working: After the application - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
If you wish to challenge your employer on any of these points, you could suggest a trial run.
If you feel that making a flexible working request has made your position more at risk or that an unfair decision has been made, it may be helpful to seek further support and understand your rights further.
ACAS and Citizens Advice have some useful guidance on their websites:
https://www.acas.org.uk/acas-code-of-practice-on-flexible-working-requests/html
We also have a page about understanding discrimination and your rights as a carer:
https://www.carersuk.org/help-and-advice/practical-support/what-are-your-rights-as-a-carer/protection-from-discrimination/
Before challenging a decision, it is important to weigh up your case and the pros and cons of taking further steps. You could ask whether your Human Resources team has an appeals process. There is further guidance here that may be helpful if the refusal of the request is causing significant problems: Solve a workplace dispute: Overview - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
If you think you have been discriminated against, you should immediately contact your Human Resources team or get in contact with a union or other staff representative. You could also contact ACAS for support and advice or Citizens Advice.
Find out more about requesting a flexible working arrangement.
Flexible working videos
One carer, Ally, describes working flexibly as a ‘win-win situation’ for both the employer and for the employee. Carers Jane, Ally and Niki all describe their experiences in our videos series.