In brief
On 9 June 2026, the Government launched a consultation on whether existing employment rights adequately support unpaid carers and parents of seriously ill children. The consultation forms part of the Government's Plan to Make Work Pay, which aims to reform employment rights in a way which offers proportionate and workable solutions for challenges faced by both employers and employees.
The consultation is seeking views on current entitlements, including unpaid carer's leave and time off for dependants, and whether further measures are needed to help individuals balance work and caring responsibilities.
Unlike other recently published consultations, this consultation paper does not set out any clear Government preferences for reform and instead seeks input across a broad range of options. While it is therefore too early to say what legislative changes might follow, the consultation may give employers pause in considering how caring-related absences are currently managed in practice.
The consultation closes on 1 September 2026.
Key takeaways
- The consultation explores whether the current framework of employment rights provides sufficient support for unpaid carers and parents of seriously ill children.
- No immediate action is required from employers. However, employers should consider reviewing existing leave policies to ensure they are clear, up to date, and applied consistently in practice.
- Employers should consider responding to the consultation, which closes on 1 September 2026.
In more detail
Existing rights
The consultation explores options to expand the existing statutory framework of support for working carers. In particular, unpaid carer's leave under the Carer's Leave Act 2023 allows eligible employees to take up to five days of unpaid leave each year to provide or arrange care for a dependant with a long-term care need. Separately, employees may also have the right to take reasonable time off work for dependants under the Employment Rights Act 1996 where urgent or unexpected caring issues arise.
These rights sit alongside a wider suite of workplace protections and entitlements which may also support carers, including the right to request flexible working, annual leave, parental leave and other family-related leave.
Possible reforms
The consultation asks whether these existing measures go far enough to support workers in practice, requesting views on a variety of suggestions. These include:
- Extending existing unpaid carer's leave entitlement beyond five days
- Introducing a statutory 'right to return' after a longer period of intensive caring (similar to the 'right to return' arrangement for those on maternity leave)
- Creating a new short period of paid carer's leave.
The Government acknowledges that any decisions about employment rights must carefully balance the needs of carers with the potential costs, operational impacts and administrative burdens for employers.
The consultation also specifically recognises the workplace challenges faced by parents of seriously ill children. In that context, it seeks views on whether a form of paid leave should be introduced for parents and caregivers following a child's diagnosis of serious illness, referred to as 'Hugh's Law'. Respondents are asked what should be included in the definition of 'serious illness', how long any paid time off should last (with a range of options suggested from one to week to over 12 weeks), and what level of pay would be appropriate (again, with a range from the equivalent of the Disability Living Allowance - currently GBP 114.60 per week – to up to 90% of full pay).
Practical considerations for employers
Importantly, this consultation does not propose any specific policies and instead seeks views on a number of possible measures. It is not yet clear how any of the proposals would work in practice, or indeed whether any additional policies will be introduced. Employers may nevertheless want to use this as an opportunity to review how caring-related absences are currently managed. In particular, employers should consider whether their policies on carer's leave, time off for dependants, flexible working and annual leave are sufficiently clear, consistently applied and understood by managers.
If measures such as longer or paid carer's leave were introduced, they could have implications for workforce planning and employment costs. Employers may therefore want to assess how frequently caring-related leave is currently requested and consider the potential impact on their workforce. These would be useful exercises in any event, whether or not the consultation leads to legislative change.
The consultation is available here.
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Lily Wallis, Trainee Solicitor, has contributed to this legal update