What changed on 6 April 2024
The Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Act 2023 and the Flexible Working (Amendment) Regulations 2023 came into force on 6 April 2024, introducing four significant changes to the statutory flexible working framework.
1. Day-one right to request
Employees no longer need 26 weeks' continuous employment to make a flexible working request. From the first day of employment, any employee can submit a statutory request. This is the most significant structural change: it means that candidates can, if they choose, negotiate flexible arrangements before accepting a role - and if those negotiations fail, they can make a statutory request on day one. Employers need to be prepared for requests from new starters and should not assume that a settled working pattern needs to be established before a request can be considered.
2. Two requests per 12 months
Previously, employees could make one statutory flexible working request per year. They can now make two requests in any 12-month period. The two requests can be for the same arrangement (if the first was refused) or for different arrangements. This matters practically: an employee whose first request is refused can make a second relatively quickly, potentially for a modified version of the original arrangement. Employers who refuse requests without genuine consideration of alternatives may find themselves fielding a second request before they've resolved the first.
3. Two-month response window
The time for employers to deal with a request has reduced from three months to two. The two-month period runs from the date the request is received. Within that period, the employer must either agree to the request or, if refusing, consult with the employee and give written reasons. The shorter window requires HR teams and line managers to engage with requests promptly - deferring consideration until month two leaves very little time for meaningful consultation.
4. Consultation requirement before refusal
This is the change that is catching the most employers out. Before April 2024, an employer could review a request and refuse it in writing without holding any meeting with the employee. From 6 April 2024, employers must consult with the employee before refusing a request. Consultation means genuine dialogue - an opportunity for the employee to discuss the request, explain the business need it is trying to address, and potentially propose modifications. A refusal without any form of consultation is now procedurally unlawful, regardless of whether the substantive ground for refusal was valid.
New requirement: From 6 April 2024, employers must consult with an employee before refusing a flexible working request. A refusal without consultation is procedurally unlawful - even if the employer has a valid statutory ground for refusal.
What hasn't changed
The eight statutory grounds on which an employer can refuse a flexible working request remain unchanged. Employers can refuse a request on any of the following grounds:
- Burden of additional costs
- Detrimental effect on ability to meet customer demand
- Inability to reorganise work among existing staff
- Inability to recruit additional staff
- Detrimental impact on quality
- Detrimental impact on performance
- Insufficiency of work during the periods the employee proposes to work
- Planned structural changes
Employers are not required to approve every request. They are required to consider requests genuinely, consult before refusing, and if refusing, identify at least one of the eight statutory grounds in writing. The grounds must be applied to the specific request - a blanket refusal based on a general preference for office attendance, without identifying how the specific request falls within one of the eight grounds, is vulnerable to challenge.
It is also worth noting that the previous requirement for employees to explain the effect on the employer and how that effect might be dealt with has been removed. Employees are no longer required to set out in their request how the proposed arrangement affects the business. This may make some requests more concise and less detailed than employers are used to.
Updating your flexible working policy
If your flexible working policy was last updated before April 2024, it is now out of date and needs to be revised. Key points to address:
- Remove any reference to a qualifying period. The policy should confirm that all employees can make a request from day one of employment.
- Update the number of requests permitted. Two per 12 months, not one.
- Update the response timeline. Two months, not three. The policy should set out the process for consultation within that window.
- Add the consultation requirement. The policy should explain that a meeting or discussion will be held before any refusal, and set out who will be involved.
- Review your language around hybrid working. If your policy distinguishes between contracted flexible arrangements and informal hybrid working, make sure both are addressed clearly - employees may make statutory requests for arrangements you currently allow informally, and the policy should explain how you handle that.
Practical questions HR teams are asking
Can we consult by email?
Technically, nothing in the legislation specifies that consultation must be face-to-face or by video. However, the spirit of the requirement is genuine dialogue - an opportunity for the employee to make their case and for the employer to explore whether modifications might make the arrangement workable. An email exchange that simply confirms the employer's intention to refuse is unlikely to satisfy the requirement. In most cases, a short meeting - in person or remotely - is the appropriate approach.
Do we need to consult before approving a request?
No. The consultation requirement applies before refusal. If you're approving the request, you can do so without a meeting - though it's good practice to confirm the agreed arrangement in writing, including the start date and any trial period.
What if the employee doesn't respond to meeting invitations?
Document your attempts to arrange consultation and allow a reasonable period for the employee to respond. If the employee is genuinely unavailable, the two-month clock continues to run. Keep a record of your attempts so that, if the process is challenged, you can demonstrate that you made genuine efforts to consult.
How do we handle two simultaneous requests from different employees?
There is no statutory priority between requests. Consider each on its merits. If two requests are genuinely incompatible - for example, two employees both requesting the same shift pattern that only one can cover - that incompatibility may be a ground for refusing one under the 'inability to reorganise work among existing staff' ground, but you must consult with both employees and document the reasoning carefully.
The inclusion dimension
Flexible working is one of the most powerful inclusion tools available to employers. The right to request applies to everyone, but the practical benefit is disproportionately felt by disabled employees, carers, parents, and people managing health conditions - groups that are often underrepresented in organisations and in senior roles.
An employer that genuinely supports flexible working retains talent it would otherwise lose, reduces unnecessary absence, and demonstrates to its workforce that people with lives outside work are valued contributors. An employer that routinely refuses requests without genuine consideration - even if technically within the statutory framework - sends the opposite message. The new consultation requirement is an opportunity to change that dynamic: it forces a conversation that, handled well, often reveals solutions that work for both sides.