The government is consulting on possible changes to the rights of employees who are unpaid carers or who are the parents of seriously ill children.
As things stand, employees who have dependants with a long-term care need can take up to one week’s unpaid carers leave in any rolling 12-month period, either to arrange or to provide care for their dependent. They are also entitled to a ‘reasonable’ amount of unpaid time off in emergency situations where a dependent is ill, injured or gives birth or if there is an unexpected disruption to their care arrangements.
There is currently no stand-alone right for parents to take time off to care for a child who is seriously ill unless that child enters neo natal care within 28 days of birth, although unpaid parental leave would be available.
The government is seeking “views on whether these entitlements work effectively for both carers and employers and what more government could do to ensure that carers are supported to remain and progress in work”. No decision has been taken on whether any changes to the law will be made and in its introduction to the consultation the government has emphasised that any changes would need to be “affordable, proportionate, and represent value for money for taxpayers, as well as being workable for employers of all sizes”.
The main proposals being consulted on are:
- allowing for a longer period of unpaid carer’s leave
- introducing a short period of paid carer’s leave
- giving employees who take carer’s leave a ‘right of return’, similar to that of employees who have taken maternity leave
- creating a separate entitlement to statutory leave for the parents or carers of seriously ill children
The consultation opened on 9 June 2026 and will run until 1 September 2026. Once the consultation has closed the government will publish a response based on the consultation responses it has received.
The full consultation documents are available here: Make Work Pay: employment rights for unpaid carers and parents of seriously ill children - GOV.UK
