Flexible working in 2027: The UK government reveals further details of upcoming reforms

On 15 September the government published its response to its recent consultation on flexible working, including the new reasonableness test for refusing requests that will come into effect in 2027.

The statutory right to request flexible working, which has been a day one right for UK employees since April 2024, is due to be further reformed in 2027 when various provision of the Employment Rights Act 2025 ('ERA 2025') come into force. 

The reforms the ERA 2025 will introduce in 2027 and on which the government consulted are:

• The introduction of a test of reasonableness where an employer refuses a statutory flexible working application (at present the employer can refuse the request on one of a number of statutory grounds but does not need to act 'reasonably' in doing so);
• A requirement on the employer to state the ground or grounds for refusing the application and explain why the employer considers that it is reasonable to refuse the application on that ground or those grounds;
• The enablement of regulations that will set out the steps an employer must follow in order to comply with the requirement to consult with the employee before refusing a flexible working request.

The consultation response confirms that: 

• There will need to be a meeting with the employee before a request is refused;
• The employee will need to be told beforehand what the purpose of the meeting is;
• The meeting will need to be conducted 'with a view to reaching agreement with the employee'; and
• The employer will be required to tell the employee what the outcome of the meeting is and the final decision.

There will not however be:

• A requirement for the decision maker (as distinct for example from an HR representative) to attend the meeting;
• A requirement to consider trial periods or time limited arrangements;
• A right to be accompanied; or
• A statutory right of appeal.

The consultation response also contains some observations on the 2024 reforms to the flexible working regime, and notes in particular that access to flexible working depends heavily on the conduct and approach of individual line managers.

• Employers were more positive about the impact of the reforms - 48.1% of employers considered that access had improved against only 27.7% of employees.
• 51.7% of employees who decided not to make a flexible working request cited a concern about a negative impact on career development as the reason.
• 63.3% of that group did not believe the request would be accepted. 
• In practice 59.6% of employers had rejected a request, with the most common reasons cited being a fear of encouraging others (77.8%), incompatibility with business needs (75%) and fear of flexible working being perceived by other employees as 'special treatment' (66.7%).

The next steps on the reforms are expected to be detailed guidance on the new reasonableness test, to be produced by ACAS by the end of 2026. ACAS will also update its code of practice on flexible working with a view to it being laid before Parliament early in the summer of 2027.

This article is authored by Christina Morton,  senior knowledge lawyer in the UK employment team.