'Labour Finally Starting To Be Labour': UK Gives Parents Two Weeks' Unpaid Leave After Miscarriage From 2027, Partners Included

A major change to Britain's employment rights will give parents and partners who experience pregnancy loss before 24 weeks the legal right to take up to two weeks of unpaid leave from work from April 2027.

The Labour government says the reform will recognise pregnancy loss as a bereavement and give families time to grieve without having to rely solely on annual leave, sick leave or the goodwill of individual employers. The measure has been welcomed as an important step, although campaigners have criticised the fact that the leave will be unpaid.

Parents Will Get Two Weeks of Protected Leave

The new entitlement will cover pregnancy losses before 24 weeks, including miscarriages, certain pregnancy terminations, unsuccessful IVF embryo transfers and losses involving intended parents through surrogacy.

The government says women and their partners will be entitled to up to two weeks of unpaid leave, creating a legal minimum for employees affected by pregnancy loss. The right is expected to come into force in April 2027 across England, Scotland and Wales.

That means an employee will no longer have to depend entirely on their employer's own bereavement policy when they need time away following an early pregnancy loss.

Partners Will Be Included Too

One of the most significant parts of the reform is that the entitlement will not be limited to the person who experienced the pregnancy physically. Partners, other parents and intended co-parents will also be covered, reflecting the fact that pregnancy loss can have a profound emotional impact on the wider family.

Campaigners have repeatedly argued that partners can be overlooked when workplaces discuss miscarriage, despite experiencing grief themselves. The government says the new rules are intended to give families the necessary time and security to grieve.

The Leave Will Be Unpaid

Despite the headline-making nature of the reform, the two weeks will not come with statutory pay.

That has prompted disappointment from pregnancy-loss charities, which say unpaid leave may still leave bereaved parents facing financial pressure at precisely the moment they are struggling emotionally and physically.

Sands described the announcement as an important first step but said two weeks of unpaid leave does not go far enough. The charity has highlighted concerns that people without paid workplace policies may otherwise face financial hardship or feel forced to return to work before they are ready.

Why Labour Says the Change Matters

The reform forms part of Labour's wider programme of employment-rights changes and follows years of campaigning for pregnancy loss to receive formal recognition in employment law.

Previous rules provided parental bereavement leave for parents whose child died before the age of 18 or who experienced a stillbirth after 24 weeks. Losses earlier in pregnancy were not covered by the same statutory bereavement protections in Great Britain.

The new legislation marks a significant change in how early pregnancy loss is acknowledged within employment policy.

Northern Ireland Already Has Different Rules

The announcement applies to England, Scotland and Wales, rather than the whole UK.

Northern Ireland has already introduced a separate entitlement. Since April 2026, eligible employees affected by miscarriage before 24 weeks can receive up to two weeks of parental bereavement leave and may also qualify for statutory parental bereavement pay.

For Labour supporters, the new Great Britain rules represent a long-awaited workers' rights victory. For critics, the lack of statutory pay means the reform does not go far enough. Either way, from 2027, pregnancy loss will have a clearer place in Britain's employment law — giving affected parents and partners a legal right to step away from work at an extraordinarily difficult time.