Flexible working policy

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Flexible working can mean any type of working arrangement other than a normal working pattern, such as flexible start and finish times, working part-time or working from home. A flexible working policy sets out your business’s approach to dealing with flexible working requests, including who is eligible to make formal requests and how those requests should be made. It might also be called an employee flexible working policy.

Note that from 6 April 2024, the rules around flexible working requests will change. Changes include employees being allowed to make two flexible working requests per year, a 'day one' right to request flexible working (currently employees must have 26 weeks of service to request flexible working), and a requirement for you to consult with your employees before rejecting a request. This policy will be updated in due course.

Some employees have the right to make a formal request for flexible working and, as an employer, you are under certain legal duties about how you handle those requests. This policy will help you to comply with your legal obligations when dealing with flexible working requests and will help you to handle requests consistently and transparently.

This policy could form part of your staff handbook or it could be provided as a standalone policy. If you’re looking to produce an entire staff handbook, use our template staff handbook instead.

You can also get this document as part of the Flexible working toolkit.

Q&A

  • When should I use this document?

    If you are an employer, you should use this document to put in place a policy to prepare for situations where your staff might request flexible working. Employees with at least 26 weeks’ continuous service with you have the right to make formal flexible working requests and you have a duty to consider those requests in a reasonable manner. You must also tell your employees how they can make flexible working requests and what information they are legally required to include in their request.

    It is best practice for you to set out that information in a flexible working policy. You can also use your policy to set out your business’ procedure for dealing with and responding to requests.

  • What does this document cover?

    This document sets out the eligibility requirement for making formal flexible working requests and how eligible employees should apply. This includes what information employees should include in their requests and what will happen if an incomplete application is received.

    The document also sets out how your business will deal with flexible working requests, including:

    • timings;

    • how and when meetings to discuss the request will be arranged;

    • what factors your business is legally entitled to take account of when considering flexible working requests;

    • how competing requests will be dealt with; and

    • what will happen if requests are granted or refused.

  • Why do I need this document?

    Some of your staff have a legal right to request flexible working and, as their employer, you have a legal duty to consider those requests in a reasonable manner, and you are only permitted to refuse them on one or more of eight specific grounds.

    Putting in place a flexible working policy will not only help your business to identify formal requests, but also to deal with those requests in a consistent and legally compliant manner.

    You must also tell your staff how they can make a formal flexible working request and it is good practice to set this out clearly in a formal policy.

  • Where can I find out more?

    To find out more about flexible working requests and what duties you are under when dealing with them, see Flexible working requests.

    For guidance about managing flexible working arrangements and how to end them, see Managing flexible working arrangements.

    If you want a policy to deal with general requests from your staff to work from home, including how you will manage home workers, use our Working from home policy.

    If you want to create this policy as part of a Staff Handbook, use our template Staff Handbook instead.

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