Flexible-working requests in the United Kingdom
Reviewed by Mellow Editorial Team, HR & payroll content team
Employees in the UK have a statutory right to request flexible working from day one of employment. Employers must consider every request reasonably and in good faith, following a defined process — but they are not obliged to grant it.
Who can request flexible working
Since the Employment Rights Act 2025 strengthened day-one rights, employees no longer need to complete a qualifying period before making a flexible-working request. The right applies to all employees, regardless of how long they have been in post.
Employees can request changes to their hours, times or location of work. That covers part-time hours, compressed weeks, staggered start and finish times, term-time working, job shares, and remote or hybrid arrangements.
Employees may make two statutory requests in any 12-month period. A request must be in writing and state what change the employee is asking for, when they want it to take effect, and what effect, if any, it might have on the business — along with how that effect could be managed.
What the process looks like
Once a request is received, you have two months to deal with it, including any appeal. In practice that means:
1. Acknowledge the request promptly.
2. Hold a meeting with the employee to discuss it (unless you intend to approve it straight away).
3. Notify the employee of your decision in writing.
4. If you refuse, allow the employee to appeal.
You can extend the two-month window if the employee agrees in writing. Keep records of every step — this protects both parties if a dispute arises later.
Grounds for refusing a request
You can only refuse a statutory flexible-working request on one or more of eight specific business grounds set out in legislation:
- The burden of additional costs
- A detrimental effect on ability to meet customer demand
- An inability to reorganise work among existing staff
- An inability to recruit additional staff
- A detrimental impact on quality
- A detrimental impact on performance
- Insufficiency of work during the periods the employee proposes to work
- Planned structural changes to the business
The reason must be genuine and apply to the specific role and circumstances. A blanket policy of refusing all remote-working requests, for example, is unlikely to withstand scrutiny — particularly if similar roles elsewhere in the business are carried out flexibly.
What a refusal must include
A written refusal must identify which of the eight grounds applies and explain why that ground is relevant. Vague or boilerplate responses carry real risk. If an employee believes the process was not followed correctly, or that the decision was based on incorrect facts, they can complain to an employment tribunal.
Employees who are refused a request may also have separate discrimination claims if the refusal disproportionately affects a protected characteristic. For example, refusing a part-time request to a primary carer — who is statistically more likely to be a woman — could give rise to an indirect sex discrimination claim if the business reason does not hold up. It is worth taking legal advice in complex cases.
Practical considerations for employers
Think about each request individually. What works for one role may not work for another, even within the same team. Document your reasoning clearly at the time, not retrospectively.
Consider a trial period. If you are uncertain whether an arrangement will work operationally, a time-limited trial with an agreed review date can reduce risk for both sides. Make clear in writing that the trial does not automatically become permanent.
Update contracts when you agree a change. A permanent change to hours, location or working pattern should be reflected in a written variation to the employment contract. Failing to do this can create confusion later about what the employee's actual terms are.
Have a policy in place. A clear internal flexible-working policy — setting out how to submit a request, who handles it and how appeals work — makes the process consistent and easier to manage. It also signals to employees that requests will be handled fairly.
Payroll and hours. If you approve a change in hours, remember the knock-on effects: contracted hours, holiday entitlement (statutory annual leave is 5.6 weeks, pro-rated for part-time workers), pension contributions based on qualifying earnings, and any impact on statutory payments. Updating payroll promptly when working patterns change avoids errors down the line.
When informal arrangements are already in place
Many flexible-working arrangements exist informally, by mutual agreement, without going through the statutory process. That is perfectly legitimate, but it creates ambiguity. If the business's needs change, an informal arrangement can be withdrawn more easily — but doing so abruptly may still damage trust and, depending on how long it has been in place, could give rise to contractual arguments. Where an informal arrangement has become established practice, it is worth reviewing whether it should be formalised.
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