NHS Bereavement, Pregnancy Loss and Neonatal Leave: Which Applies?

Nobody should have to research employment law in the days after a loss, or while their baby is on a neonatal unit. This page is built to be read quickly. It tells you which rights apply to which situation, gives the Handbook paragraph or official source for each, and is honest about what we could not verify. If you are reading this because it has just happened, you do not need to get everything right now. Tell your manager what has happened, say you need time off, and work out the detail afterwards: the leave rights below generally allow for that.

Quick decision table: what happened, what applies

Your child has died (any age)

Section 23 of the Handbook is a national minimum standard for staff who are bereaved parents. The key terms:

• ✓ Who counts as a bereaved parent: anyone who had responsibility as one of the primary carers for the child, including adoptive parents, legal guardians, people fostering to adopt, and other parent and child relationships the employer considers reasonable. It can include grandparents with caring responsibilities, or a carer who is not the biological parent.
• ✓ No age limit: there is no requirement for the child to be under 18.
• ✓ Pay: two weeks' occupational child bereavement pay, which includes any statutory parental bereavement pay, calculated on what you would have received at work, normally from the previous three months.
• ✓ Flexible: you do not have to take the two weeks in one block, and taking the leave is your choice, not compulsory.
• ✓ Timing: you can take it immediately by telling your employer you will be absent for this purpose, or request it at any point up to 56 weeks after the death, giving reasonable notice.
• ✓ Evidence: you will not be required to produce a death certificate or other official documents, though a written declaration can be asked for within a reasonable time.
• ✓ Both parents in the NHS: where both work for the same NHS organisation, both receive the entitlement.

Worked example. On a £30,000 salary, normal weekly pay is about £576.92. Two weeks' occupational child bereavement pay would be about £1,153.84 before tax. That figure includes any statutory parental bereavement pay, which GOV.UK gives as £194.32 a week or 90% of average weekly earnings, whichever is lower. So the statutory element would be about £388.64 and the NHS element the remaining £765.20. This is an illustration, since the Handbook calculates pay from what you would have received at work, normally over the previous three months, so enhancements you normally receive can increase it.

The statutory right sits alongside it. Statutory Parental Bereavement Leave gives two weeks of leave from the first day of employment for each child who has died or was stillborn, as two weeks together, two separate weeks, or one week, finishing within 56 weeks of the death, per GOV.UK. The NHS terms are the more generous baseline for most staff.

Stillbirth from 24 weeks

Three things apply together. First, para 15.32 of the Handbook gives the same maternity leave and pay as if the baby had been born alive, so the full occupational scheme can apply if you qualify. Second, Section 23 (para 7) says parents who experience a stillbirth from the 24th week of pregnancy are eligible for the child bereavement provisions and will still be eligible for the Section 15 provisions. Third, GOV.UK says statutory Parental Bereavement Leave and Pay apply to a stillbirth after 24 weeks, and the same page says Parental Bereavement Leave must start after other leave has ended where another statutory leave was running.

Our maternity leave guide and the maternity pay calculator show how the maternity element works in the usual case. Ask HR to confirm in writing how each entitlement will apply to your situation and how the leave will be recorded.

Miscarriage and pregnancy loss before 24 weeks

The framework is national guidance for NHS employers published by NHS England in March 2024, and local employers are still expected to follow their own procedures and can add to it. We have not verified whether it is contractual, or how every trust has adopted it, so ask HR directly and ask to see your trust's pregnancy loss policy. Practical points:

• • Ask for the time off to be recorded under the pregnancy loss provision where your trust has one, and ask whether it counts towards sickness absence triggers.
• • If you are unwell as well, your fit note and sick pay apply as usual. Our sick pay guide explains the scale.
• • If you were already on maternity leave planning, tell HR what has happened so pay and leave are not changed by mistake.
• • A statutory right to unpaid bereavement leave covering pregnancy loss before 24 weeks is expected under the Employment Rights Act 2025, but it is not yet in force and the detail is to be set by regulations. Do not rely on it until it is.

Your baby is in neonatal care

Neonatal care leave and pay is a statutory right under the Neonatal Care (Leave and Pay) Act 2023. Para 15.118 of the Handbook says all NHS employers must ensure local policies incorporate the statutory provisions, which cover parents whose newborns have received medical or palliative neonatal care for seven days or more in the first 28 days after birth. In summary, per GOV.UK and Acas:

• ✓ Leave: one week of leave for every 7 full and continuous days your baby is in neonatal care, up to 12 weeks, for babies born on or after 6 April 2025.
• ✓ Who: the baby's parent or the partner of the baby's mother with caring responsibility.
• ✓ Timing: care must start within 28 days of birth. Leave is taken in two tiers: during the care and up to a week afterwards, and the rest within 68 weeks of the birth.
• ✓ With other leave: it is in addition to other parental leave and pay. If you are already on maternity leave, neonatal care leave is added to the end of it.
• ✓ Pay: Statutory Neonatal Care Pay needs 26 weeks of continuous service and average earnings at or above the lower earnings limit, and is paid at the lower of £194.32 a week or 90% of average weekly earnings, per Acas. Leave is available even where you do not qualify for pay.
• ✓ Your rights are protected during leave, including pay rises, holiday accrual and the right to return.

We found no NHS enhancement of neonatal care pay in Section 15, which refers only to the statutory provisions. Some trusts may provide more locally, so ask HR. Our childcare cost calculator and the guide to returning to work help with planning when the time comes.

Your partner has died after the birth

Para 15.119 of the Handbook says all NHS employers in England, Wales and Scotland must ensure local policies incorporate the statutory Bereaved Partner's Paternity Leave Regulations 2026. It provides statutory leave for parents who experience the death of a partner who was the mother of the child or the primary care giver, within the first year of the child's life or adoption. We have not verified the length of the leave or the pay conditions, so ask HR and check GOV.UK. Child bereavement leave (above) and compassionate leave (below) may also be relevant.

A parent, partner, sibling or other relative has died

For relatives other than your own child, there is no fixed national NHS entitlement. Section 33 of the Handbook (paras 33.48 to 33.50) says bereavement or compassionate leave is leave granted if an employee experiences the bereavement of a dependant, and that policies developed in partnership with local staff side representatives should entitle employees to paid bereavement or compassionate leave, including for funeral and memorial services and taking religious or belief obligations into account. Para 33.44 adds that relatively short periods of leave for emergencies are expected to be paid, and para 19.2 lists special leave among the terms agreed locally. So the number of days varies, and managers have discretion.

Separately, the law gives employees the right to a reasonable amount of time off to deal with an emergency involving a dependant, and GOV.UK says the employer may pay you for it but does not have to. A dependant can be a spouse, partner, child, grandchild or parent, or someone who depends on you for care. That right covers dealing with the emergency, so it is not a general bereavement entitlement.

For the full picture of how local compassionate leave works, how managers use discretion and what to do if a request is refused, see NHS bereavement leave explained.

Can I take more than one type of leave?

Often, yes, because they are different entitlements. For example, a stillbirth at 28 weeks can bring maternity leave and pay, child bereavement leave and statutory Parental Bereavement Leave. A baby who spends weeks in neonatal care may mean neonatal care leave added to the end of maternity leave. The points to check are:

• ✓ Parental Bereavement Leave must start after another statutory leave has ended, per GOV.UK, so ask how your trust sequences them.
• ✓ Neonatal care leave is in addition to other parental leave and pay, and is added to the end of maternity leave, per Acas.
• ✓ Each entitlement has its own pay rule, so ask HR for a written summary showing which leave you are on for each period and what you will be paid.
• ✓ Annual leave can be used alongside these entitlements if you want more time, and para 15.94 says employees on maternity leave retain their right to annual leave and public holidays.

What to say and who to ask

• • Your line manager or HR, who can tell you which of your trust's policies applies.
• • Your union representative, who can check the leave has been applied and recorded correctly. See NHS staff representation.
• • Occupational health or staff wellbeing, and the support described in our NHS mental health support guide.
• • If something is refused or recorded wrongly, the grievance procedure.

Related guides

This page is general information, correct to the best of our knowledge as of October 2026, and is not legal or HR advice. Trust policies apply the NHS Handbook locally and the law can change, including the Employment Rights Act 2025 provisions on bereavement leave. Sources: GOV.UK parental bereavement, GOV.UK neonatal care, GOV.UK time off for dependants, Acas neonatal care and the NHS England pregnancy and baby loss framework. FrontlinePay is independent and is not affiliated with the NHS, GOV.UK or Acas.