Income & Employment Guides UK — Maximise Your Earnings

Flexible Working Rights UK 2026 — Day-One Right Explained

Your right to request flexible working from day one of employment. How to make a request, what your employer must do, and what happens if they refuse.

By PocketWise · · 4 min read

Salary and income data is based on ONS and other official UK statistical sources. Figures are averages and may not reflect your individual circumstances.

Since April 2024, every employee in the UK has the right to request flexible working from their very first day. Here’s how it works and what your employer must do.

Key Facts

Feature Detail
Right to request From day one of employment
How many requests per year 2
Employer response deadline 2 months (unless you agree longer)
Must employer agree? No — but must consult you and give a valid statutory reason if refusing
Who can request Any employee (not workers or self-employed)
What you can request Any change to hours, times, or location of work

Types of Flexible Working

Type What it means
Part-time Fewer hours per week than full-time
Compressed hours Full-time hours in fewer days (e.g. 4 × 10-hour days)
Flexitime Choose your start and finish times within core hours
Remote working Work entirely from home or another location
Hybrid working Split time between office and home
Job sharing Two people share one full-time role
Staggered hours Different start/finish/break times from colleagues
Annualised hours Total hours calculated over the year with flexibility in when you work them
Term-time working Work only during school term times (unpaid during holidays)

How to Make a Request

Step-by-step

Step Action
1 Put your request in writing (email is fine)
2 State it’s a “statutory flexible working request”
3 Include the date of the request
4 Describe the change you want and when you’d like it to start
5 Explain how any impact on the business could be managed
6 State whether you’ve made a previous request and when
7 Keep a copy for your records

What to Include in Your Request

Element Example
Type of change “I’d like to work from home on Mondays and Fridays”
Start date “From 1 June 2026”
Impact on work “I can attend all team meetings via video call and my output won’t be affected”
How to manage impact “My colleague X can cover in-person queries on those days”
Previous requests “I have not made a flexible working request in the last 12 months”

What Your Employer Must Do

Requirement Detail
Consult with you Must discuss the request with you before making a decision
Respond within 2 months Including any appeal (unless you agree to a longer timeframe)
Give a valid reason if refusing Must cite one of the 8 statutory grounds
Not treat you unfavourably For making a request
Consider the request reasonably Not just automatically refuse

The 8 Statutory Reasons for Refusal

Reason What it means
1. Burden of additional costs The change would cost too much
2. Detrimental effect on meeting customer demand Customers would be affected
3. Inability to reorganise work among existing staff Other staff can’t cover the work
4. Inability to recruit additional staff Can’t hire someone to cover
5. Detrimental impact on quality Quality of work would suffer
6. Detrimental impact on performance Output/productivity would drop
7. Insufficiency of work during proposed periods Not enough work at the times you want to work
8. Planned structural changes Business reorganisation is planned

Your employer cannot refuse for reasons outside this list. “We’ve never done it before” or “it wouldn’t be fair to others” are not valid legal reasons.

If Your Request Is Refused

Step Action
1 Ask for the refusal in writing with the specific statutory reason
2 Appeal internally if your employer has an appeal process
3 Contact ACAS for early conciliation (required before tribunal)
4 Consider an employment tribunal claim if you believe the refusal was unreasonable

What You Can Claim At Tribunal

Claim Detail
Failure to deal with request properly Employer didn’t follow correct procedure
Refusal based on incorrect facts The stated reason isn’t supported by evidence
Automatic unfair dismissal If you were dismissed for making a request
Compensation Up to 8 weeks’ pay for procedural failures
Discrimination If the refusal is linked to a protected characteristic (e.g. sex, disability) — unlimited compensation

Flexible Working and Discrimination

Situation Potential discrimination
Mother’s request for part-time refused, father’s wasn’t Sex discrimination
Disabled employee’s request for home working refused without considering reasonable adjustments Disability discrimination
Older worker’s request for reduced hours refused where younger workers’ requests were granted Age discrimination
Pregnant employee’s request refused Pregnancy/maternity discrimination

If flexible working is refused and it disproportionately affects people of a particular sex, age, or disability status, this could be indirect discrimination — which carries unlimited compensation.

Trial Periods

Detail Information
Can you request a trial? Yes — often a good way to persuade a reluctant employer
How long? Typically 3–6 months
What happens after? Review with your employer — make permanent, adjust, or revert
Is employer obliged to offer a trial? No — but it’s good practice and ACAS recommends it

Practical Tips

Tip Why
Frame it around business benefit Employers respond better to “how this helps” than “what I want”
Suggest a trial period Reduces employer risk
Be specific Vague requests are easier to refuse
Put it in writing Creates a paper trail and makes it a formal statutory request
Know your rights An employer who doesn’t follow the process is already breaking the law
Keep records Save emails, meeting notes, and any response

Sources

  1. ONS — Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings