Preloaded UK policy

Flexible Working Policy template

Day-one right (April 2024), 2 requests per year, 2-month decision window and the 8 grounds for refusal.

Legal basis
  • Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Act 2023
  • Flexible Working (Amendment) Regulations 2023 — in force 6 April 2024
Last reviewed April 2024. Guidance, not legal advice.

What the policy covers

  1. 1. POLICY STATEMENT
    your company supports flexible working and will consider all requests seriously and fairly.
  2. 2. ELIGIBILITY
    All employees have the right to request flexible working from their first day of employment.
  3. 3. TYPES OF FLEXIBLE WORKING
    Requests may relate to any change to hours, times or place of work, including:
  4. 6. GROUNDS FOR REFUSAL
    We may refuse a request on one or more of the eight statutory grounds:
  5. 8. Planned structural changes
    Any refusal will state the ground(s) relied upon and our reasons in writing.
  6. 7. EQUALITY CONSIDERATIONS
    Requests linked to childcare responsibilities, disability, religion or belief are particularly sensitive.
  7. 8. TRIAL PERIODS
    We may agree a trial period before making a permanent change.
  8. 9. APPEAL
    Where a request is refused, the employee may appeal in writing within … of receiving the written refusal.
  9. 10. REVIEW
    This policy will be reviewed annually and following any relevant changes to employment law.

Who needs it

Any UK employer running rotas, leave and the day-to-day of employing people. These set out the rules once so nobody argues about them twice.

Questions people ask

Is a flexible working policy a legal requirement?

It rests on Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Act 2023 and Flexible Working (Amendment) Regulations 2023 — in force 6 April 2024. Some policies must be written down once a business reaches a certain size or does certain work; others are simply how a tribunal, an inspector or a client's auditor expects to see that you have thought about it. A clear, dated, signed policy is the evidence either way. Guidance, not legal advice.

Can I change it to suit how we work?

Yes. Inside Work-Lynx it is a starting point: put your company name in, adjust the arrangements to what you actually do, set the review date and publish it. Staff read and acknowledge it on their phones, and you can see who has not.

Is it up to date?

Last reviewed April 2024. The pack is updated when the law moves, and every policy carries a review date so it does not quietly go stale.

How do I get it?

Two ways. It is preloaded in Work-Lynx with the other 48 UK policies (from £2.50 a month plus £1 per employee, 14 days free, no card), and a Word version is a free download on our free templates page.

Who is it for?

Any UK employer running rotas, leave and the day-to-day of employing people. These set out the rules once so nobody argues about them twice.

All 49 UK policies, £2.50 a month

This policy and 48 others are already in Work-Lynx, alongside GPS clock-in, rotas, timesheets, leave and Employ AI for UK employment law. £2.50 base plus £1 per employee a month. 14 days free, no card, no sales call.

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