There is an ongoing campaign to extend the current policy on parental bereavement leave, with pay, to parents who lose a baby before 24 weeks of pregnancy, which is the current cut-off point.

At the moment, parents who lose their baby before 24 weeks only have the options of taking sick leave or annual leave, neither of which is appropriate.

This proposed change was raised directly with Paul Scully, the Minister for Small Business, Consumers and Labour Markets, during a Westminster Hall debate on 8 March.

In response, the Minister detailed some of the Government’s existing policies to support people through bereavement, and noted that the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) had published guidance on managing a bereavement in the workplace.

The Minister said that: ‘businesses do have that important role to play’. However, he would not commit to mandating or even encouraging businesses to provide paid miscarriage leave to parents who lose a baby before 24 weeks.

I know that this is a disappointing response, however, I can assure you that I will continue to support this campaign going forward and push the Government to implement this policy change.