Parental Bereavement Leave and Pay: employees who lose a child under 18 or suffer a stillbirth from 24 weeks of pregnancy will receive up to 2 weeks’ leave (which can be taken in two separate blocks of one week if desired). Subject to meeting eligibility criteria (minimum of 26 weeks’ service and earnings test) they will also be able to claim parental bereavement pay at the statutory rate, which mirrors the rate for statutory paternity / shared parental pay. Additional detail can be found in our Parental Bereavement Leave and Pay Guidance.

Stillbirths: employees who suffer a stillbirth after 24 weeks of pregnancy are still entitled to statutory maternity leave (and pay, subject to the usual eligibility rules). The death of a child following a live birth equally has no impact on maternity leave and pay entitlements.

Time off for dependants: under the Employment Rights Act 1996 an employee may take ‘reasonable’ time off work to deal with an emergency, which would include a bereavement involving a dependant (e.g. partner, child, parent or someone else who depended on the employee for care). You can find out more about this right on our Time Off for Dependants page.

Compassionate leave: there is no specific legal right to take ‘compassionate leave’ so this is a question of local policy. It is good practice to offer employees some paid leave following the death of someone close. Some employers choose to offer different amounts of leave depending on the proximity of the relationship whilst others prefer to have a set number of days for any significant bereavement. Whilst having a baseline can be useful to help ensure that one employee is not treated less favourably than another, every bereavement situation is different and flexibility should be exercised so that each set of circumstances can be considered on a case-by-case basis. Additional unpaid leave can, of course, be granted.

Reasonable adjustments: remember that an employee experiencing ongoing mental health difficulties as a consequence of bereavement could be considered disabled under the Equality Act in some cases, triggering the requirement to make reasonable adjustments. Occupational health advice may assist in such circumstances.

Senior leaders can support their staff by:

• Acknowledging the bereavement and offering their condolences.
• Ensure the employee knows that they are not expected to come into work following the news and that they must take what time out is needed.
• Ask how they would like to stay in contact. Is phone or email contact preferred? Are there particular times to avoid? In the first few days, they may not wish to speak to anyone as they may be in shock. Be careful not to pressurise the employee into making decisions at this point.
• Ask how much information they wish their colleagues to have about the death; remember that this information is private under data protection legislation and stick strictly to the facts.
• Consider what action needs to be taken if the death is in the media; particularly if the press contact the school/college or approach colleagues seeking an interview.
• Ask if the employee wishes to be contacted by colleagues.
• Be conscious of diversity and the impact this may have on, for example, days taken to allow the employee to fulfil religious or cultural expectations such as mourning rituals.
• Be open to revising and reviewing the situation with the employee. Keep the dialogue open.
• Explore with the employee what extra support would be helpful.
• Signpost supportive services. if you subsribe to an EAP (Employee Assistance Programme) or have a trained adult mental health first aider ensure your employee has the contact details. If not, signpost to relevant organisations and charities that can support bereaved employees.

The full emotional impact of the bereavement may not be felt for some time after a death and there are likely to be ups and downs as the bereaved person adjusts.

Regular reviews will allow the manager and the bereaved employee to discuss and agree any strategies or adjustments which may be needed to enable them to return to work and to support them in the workplace after their return. This might lead to a temporary or long-term change to, for example, hours or responsibilities. Where the school/college provides access to one, a referral to an employee assistance programme (EAP) might be appropriate. It should be clear to the employee who in the school/college they should talk to if they need additional support.

If a bereaved employee is worried about how they will be treated by colleagues on their return to work, ask them what would help and offer to share this with the wider team. For example, some employees may ask that no one mentions the bereavement, but instead keep things focused on work matters. Others will appreciate gestures of empathy and support.

Special or significant days, such as the inquest, anniversary of the death, or the birthday of the person who died, can also be particularly difficult times for bereaved people. Sensitivity around these times, particularly when considering requests for specific days off, will help employees to manage their grief.

The physical and emotional impact of grief may mean that some bereaved employees become unwell and are unable to be at work for a period of time after a bereavement. As a result they may take time off sick. Over the course of a year, a bereaved employee may breach absence trigger points. Managers should consider whether it is appropriate to exclude some or all of the time off associated with the bereavement. Similarly, it would be good practice to take the bereavement into account should there be an impact on any aspect of the employee’s work or performance irrespective of any ongoing issues between the employer and employee.

Some bereaved employees may need additional time away from work to cope with their grief, make practical arrangements, or to support a bereaved child. In cases where the employee feels they need time away from work but where sick leave is not appropriate, it would be good practice to offer an alternative, for example flexible or part-time working, or a period of special leave or a career break. This can be paid or unpaid.

Bereavement will frequently lead to changes in the personal and financial circumstances of the bereaved employee. An employee who loses their partner, for example, becomes responsible for raising their children as a single parent. An employee whose sibling dies may take on caring responsibilities for an elderly parent. Any death which affects children or vulnerable adults will mean they need increased support from the people who care for them.

School leaders and line managers should be mindful of the family unit of the bereaved employee, and appreciate that, in many cases, a flexible approach – for example, offering part-time hours or flexible working – is most likely to support and retain the employee, and minimise sick days, as they negotiate new or increased caring responsibilities.

For parents, the loss of a child will be devastating and it is important to recognise that the whole family will be affected. For example, is the employee a single parent? Was the child an only child or are there siblings involved? The answers to these questions may influence how much support from the workplace is needed. A single parent with other children to attend to will possibly need more flexibility (e.g. time off, flexible working etc.) in order to return to full-time work over time. Some bereaved parents may need a longer-term change to their working hours.

A couple grieving over the death of a child may also need flexibility regarding their working hours especially if one parent is not coping as well as the other. They may need to leave the workplace at short notice to support their partner.

The principles of flexibility and empathy outlined above still very much apply when it is an employee who has died but there may be an increased impact on the school/college and the way it is dealt with can have long-lasting implications (positive or negative) on the relations between the school/college, the staff and the wider community.

How the news of the death is communicated to other employees is key to this and the method of communication should be personal and sensitive. There may be areas of the organisation, for example the team or department where the person who died worked, that are particularly affected and they may need more support.

A representative from the school/college should contact the family to offer condolences and agree a point of contact for any questions they may have, for example about pay or pension arrangements. Practical points like books of condolence and attendance at the funeral should be considered by managers and clearly communicated to the wider staff. There may be appropriate ways of commemorating the person who has died and of marking key dates; the family should be consulted about these.

More detailed guidance on responding to the death of an employee is available.

The guidance on this page focuses on workplace issues but, of course, in schools and colleges there is an even broader impact when a pupil or member of staff dies. Some points to bear in mind:

• Beyond informing staff, pupils and parents about the fact of the death, be sensitive to the grieving family’s wishes and only provide what details they have consented to be made public. Reassure pupils that they should talk about the death and how they are feeling.
• Allow pupils to take time from their lessons to talk about their reactions and consider opening a book of remembrance or similar to allow pupils to express their feelings.
• Ensure that school staff meet regularly initially to support each other and to discuss how best to support the pupils.
• Liaise with the family about funeral arrangements and whether they are happy for colleagues / pupils to attend. Pupils may need support with what to expect if they have not attended a funeral before.
• Talk to pupils and staff about appropriate ways of remembering the person who has died, such as holding a memorial service or planting a tree.