Baby loss and miscarriage support in the UK: leave, pay and help

The line the law draws at 24 weeks

This is difficult reading, and we are going to be direct about it because vagueness here costs people entitlements at the worst possible time. UK statutory entitlements after the loss of a baby turn almost entirely on one threshold: whether the loss occurred before or after the start of the 24th week of pregnancy.

Nothing about that threshold reflects the significance of the loss. It is a legal boundary, not a measure of grief.

Loss from 24 weeks: your maternity entitlements survive

GOV.UK's employer guidance is explicit. Employees still qualify for maternity leave or pay if the baby is stillborn after the start of the 24th week of pregnancy, or dies after being born.

In practice that means the full 52 weeks of Statutory Maternity Leave remain available, and Statutory Maternity Pay remains payable for up to 39 weeks if you meet its qualifying conditions: 90% of average weekly earnings for the first six weeks, then £194.32 a week or 90% of average weekly earnings, whichever is lower, for the next 33 weeks in the 2026 to 2027 tax year. You do not have to take the leave, but nobody can require you to come back.

Parental Bereavement Leave on top

Separately, you and your partner may be able to take time off if your child dies before turning 18, or if you have a stillbirth after 24 weeks of pregnancy.

Parental Bereavement Leave is two weeks, and it is a day-one right: you can take it from the first day of your employment, for each child who has died or was stillborn. You can take the two weeks together, as two separate weeks, or take only one week. A week means the number of days you normally work, so a week is two days if you work Mondays and Tuesdays.

The leave can start on or after the date of death or stillbirth and must finish within 56 weeks of that date. If you are already on maternity leave when the death or stillbirth happens, your Parental Bereavement Leave must start after that leave has ended, though not necessarily immediately after.

The pay, and its qualifying conditions

Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay is £194.32 a week or 90% of your average weekly earnings, whichever is lower. Unlike the leave, the pay is not a day-one right: you must have been continuously employed for at least 26 weeks up to the end of the relevant week, which is the week ending with a Saturday immediately before the week of the death or stillbirth, continue to be employed up to the day the child dies or is stillborn, and earn on average at least £129 a week before tax over an eight-week period.

The notice rules, made deliberately light

The notice requirements are unusually gentle, and it is worth knowing that. For leave taken in the first eight weeks after the death or stillbirth, you must tell your employer before you would normally start work on the first day you want off. For leave taken from nine to 56 weeks afterwards, you must give at least one week's notice.

You can tell your employer by phone, voicemail, text message or email. It does not have to be in writing. And you do not need to give proof of death or stillbirth. For the pay you must ask within 28 days of the first day you are claiming for, give the details in writing, and complete a declaration once.

If the bereavement was on or after 6 April 2026 and you are employed in Northern Ireland, the eligibility rules differ, so check the nidirect guidance rather than GOV.UK.

Loss before 24 weeks: the statutory gap

Here we have to be plain. A miscarriage before the start of the 24th week does not trigger Statutory Maternity Leave, Statutory Maternity Pay or Parental Bereavement Leave under the rules set out on GOV.UK. That is a real and widely criticised gap, and it means people are frequently relying on sick leave, compassionate leave or their employer's own policy after a loss at 20 weeks.

What that leaves you with in practice: statutory sick pay or company sick pay if you are unfit for work, which after a mid-pregnancy loss you very often are and which is a legitimate reason for a fit note; any compassionate or bereavement policy your employer operates, which many do and which is worth asking HR about directly; and annual leave if you would rather not disclose anything. Pregnancy-related sickness absence should not be counted against you in absence management procedures, and if it is being used against you, take advice.

Employment law in this area has been under active review, so if you are reading this after a loss it is worth checking the current position on GOV.UK rather than assuming nothing has changed.

Where to get support

Sands supports anyone affected by the death of a baby before, during or shortly after birth, and runs a free helpline and local support groups. The Miscarriage Association provides support and information for people affected by miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy and molar pregnancy. Tommy's funds research into miscarriage, stillbirth and premature birth and runs a midwife-staffed support line.

Your GP is the route to bereavement counselling on the NHS, and hospital bereavement midwives exist in most maternity units and can help with practical matters as well as support. Ask to be referred; you do not have to have asked at the time.

What to do, and in what order

If the loss was at or after 24 weeks, tell your employer that your maternity leave and pay entitlements continue, and ask separately about Parental Bereavement Leave and Pay. Note the 56-week window; you do not have to decide now. If the loss was earlier, ask your GP for a fit note if you need one and ask HR what compassionate policy exists. Contact one of the charities above, whose helplines are staffed by people who do this every day. And if you want to talk to the hospital about what happened, ask for the bereavement midwife.