On 15^th December 2025, the Paternity Leave (Bereavement) Act 2024 (Commencement) Regulations 2025 were passed, bringing the whole of the Paternity Leave (Bereavement) Act 2024 (the Bereavement Act) into force on 29^th December 2025. The Government has also introduced the Bereaved Partner’s Paternity Leave Regulations 2026 which will extend fathers and partners leave substantially from April. Whilst the circumstances in which this will apply are rare, it will bring a significant change to leave entitlement for those impacted at a particularly difficult time, where they are dealing with grief alongside caring responsibilities.

Changes brought by the Bereavement Act:

The Bereavement Act disapplies the usual 26-week minimum service requirement for eligibility for paternity leave in the case where the mother dies during childbirth or where the mother/primary caregiver die within a year of the birth or adoption. Instead, fathers and partners (including those in surrogacy or parental order situations) will be entitled to paternity leave from day one of their employment. The Bereavement Act also allows for paternity leave in this situation to be taken where a father/partner has already taken shared parental leave (in most cases this is currently not possible).

The Employment Right Act 2025 (ERA 2025) will remove the qualifying period for paternity leave and parental leave. The Employment Rights Act 2025 (Parental and Paternity leave) Removal of Qualifying Periods etc.) (Consequential Amendments) Regulations 2026/15 come into force in respect of employees entitled to take paternity or parental leave on or after 6 April 2026.  In addition, s17 ERA 2025 will come into force in April and will remove the ban on taking paternity leave after shared parental leave for all those wanting to take paternity leave. As such, the changes in the Bereavement Act will only have an impact for a limited time. However, for anyone who does benefit from them between December 2025 and April 2026, the change is likely to be highly significant and will provide statutory support to fathers and partners through an exceedingly difficult time.

Bereaved Partners Paternity Leave Regulations 2026:

On 12 January, the Government introduced the draft Bereaved Partner’s Paternity Leave Regulations. This will provide that following the death of the mother/primary caregiver of a child, the child’s father or the partner of the mother/primary care giver will be entitled to take up to 52 weeks from the day the mother/primary caregiver dies until 1 year after the child’s birth. This regulation takes effect to cover any case where the mother/primary caregiver dies on or after 6 April 2026, and employees will be eligible from the first day of their employment. This leave comes with protections including a right to all terms and conditions of employment apart from remuneration during the leave, a right to return to the same job or another job which is both suitable and appropriate depending on the length of leave in total, redundancy protection and protection from detriment. There are notice requirements for this meaning that an employee taking leave must inform their employer of their intention to take leave, the length of time they intend to be absent and any variations to this either verbally or in writing, although this must be in writing if the relevant date is more than 8 weeks following the bereavement date. This regulation also introduces entitlement for bereaved fathers/partners of up to 8 weeks of leave in the case that the child also dies or is returned after being placed for adoption, notwithstanding the purpose of the leave is usually for caring for the child.

Possible future changes:

There is no current entitlement for this leave to be paid (other than usual entitlement to statutory paternity pay of up to two weeks which requires 26 weeks continuous service), so it will have to be seen whether the Government introduces such a provision.

Considerations for employers:

Employers should review their paternity leave policies to ensure they include this entitlement. The circumstances to which the Bereavement Act applies are likely to be rare, but in the case that they do, employers may want to consider offering enhanced leave during this time. Employers may also consider whether any contractual or enhanced paternity pay they offer will apply for the whole duration of this leave, and should ensure any eligibility to this is clearly documented in policies to avoid any uncertainty.

Thank you to Emma Torok for all her help in preparing this post.