The Employment Rights Act 2025 (“ERA 2025”) received Royal Assent on 18 December 2025 to become law. A phased implementation during 2026 and 2027 is anticipated and it is therefore important that schools and MATs start to prepare for the changes. Our Schools HR team considers key changes affecting the education sector and the importance of preparing for these changes now.
1. Unfair Dismissal: Reduced Qualifying Period
- A major change introduced by the ERA 2025 is the reduction of the qualifying period for ordinary unfair dismissal claims from two years to six months.
- The implementation date for this change is 1 January 2027.
- This means that:
- employees with continuous service of six months or more at the effective date of termination;
- who are dismissed on 1 January 2027 or after
will be protected from unfair dismissal (including constructive dismissal).
- Crucially the length of service will be retrospective meaning that anyone hired on or before 1 July 2026 who is dismissed on or after 1 January 2027 will acquire protection by the time the law changes.
- What schools should do to prepare for the change:
- Review recruitment processes and ensure robust procedures are in place before employment commences.
- Consider shortening probation periods to 3 months to allow for timely decision-making.
- Ensure managers proactively manage probation and that they act promptly where performance concerns arise.
- Update contracts and policies, particularly in relation to probation clauses, dismissal procedures and internal HR guidance.
- Provide training to people managers and key recruitment decision makers.
- Reduced notice periods during probation including for teachers.
- PILON clauses should become standard.
2. A New Duty to Prevent Sexual Harassment
- From October 2026, employers will face a stronger legal duty to take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment — an elevated threshold from the current requirement to take reasonable steps.
- Liability for sexual harassment in the workplace will extend to third‑party harassment.
- The ERA 2025 will also classify the reporting of workplace sexual harassment as a protected disclosure under whistleblowing law.
- What schools should do to prepare for the change:
- Conduct a sexual harassment risk assessment – this is likely essential to demonstrate compliance and means actively assessing the risk of sexual harassment for staff and reviewing what steps can be taken to prevent these incidents from happening.
- Implement reasonable preventative measures, taking into account size, resources and risks identified in the sexual harassment risk assessment.
- Ensure training, policies and reporting mechanisms are up to date.
- Ensure a zero-tolerance approach to sexual harassment in the workplace
- Address any workplace culture issues particularly around workplace banter, jokes and innuendos.
- Set clear expectations around workplace behaviour for all levels of staff.
3. Other key changes
Change | When? |
Extension of Acas Early Conciliation period The maximum period for Acas Early Conciliation (“EC”) has doubled from six weeks to twelve weeks and the intention of this is to reduce pressure on Acas and tribunals, allow more meaningful settlement discussions and increase settlement rates. The consequence is also that claimants have more time in which to bring a claim as the effect of Acas EC is to pause the time limit to bring an employment tribunal clam. | 1 December 2025 (already in force) |
Statutory Sick Pay Employees will have the right to statutory sick pay from the first day of illness, rather than from the fourth. | 6 April 2026 |
Paternity leave and unpaid parental leave Paternity leave and unpaid parental leave to become a Day 1 right. Previously, 26 weeks’ service was required for paternity leave and 1 years’ service was required for unpaid parental leave. | 6 April 2026 |
Extended Time Limits for Tribunal Claims The standard time limit for most employment tribunal claims will increase from three months to six months. | October 2026 |
Collective Redundancy Consultation The threshold for collective consultation will apply across the entire business, not just at a single establishment. For MATs, this is an important change to note as redundancies across the entire MAT, rather than individual schools, will be taken into account. Further guidance is expected on this including the number of proposed redundancies across the entire business that would trigger collective consultation obligations. Schools must also consider the two-pronged risk posed by the reduction to the qualifying service required for unfair dismissal, as collective consultation means a set minimum of consultation which could take employees over the six-month mark. It will therefore be important to undertake restructures as soon as possible. | October 2026 |
Fire and rehire The ERA 2025 significantly restricts employers’ ability to change contractual terms without agreement. Fire and rehire will likely not be possible at all, unless the school is facing severe financial difficulties such that fire and rehire is necessary to avoid business closure, which is a high threshold to meet. | January 2027 |
Removal of the compensation cap for unfair dismissal claims The ERA 2025 will completely remove the compensation cap for unfair dismissal claims, which is currently capped at the lower of 52 weeks’ gross pay or £118,223. | January 2027 |
Flexible Working Flexible working rights will be extended. Schools will be permitted to refuse a flexible working request for the existing permitted reasons. However, in addition to the current regime, they will also need to set out in writing why the refusal is reasonable. | 2027 |
Maternity leave and dismissal Mothers returning from maternity leave will have enhanced protection from dismissal within the first 6 months, extending protection beyond just redundancy to all forms of dismissal. An employer will only be able to dismiss an employee within 6 months of returning from maternity leave in narrowly defined circumstances, which are likely to include gross misconduct and business closure. | 2027 |
Bereavement Leave Extension of bereavement leave to cover the loss of a loved one, rather than the loss of a child. | 2027 |
Zero‑Hour Contracts Workers on zero‑hour arrangements will gain the right to be offered guaranteed hours where they have regularly worked a specified number of hours during a reference period (likely 12 weeks). Workers will not be obliged to accept the offer, but employers should consider how this change may affect roles frequently using casual staff — for example, cleaners and exam invigilators. | 2027 |
Conclusion
The ERA 2025 introduces a broad range of reforms that will require careful planning and preparation. Given the number of upcoming changes, it is essential to begin preparing now to ensure compliance with the legislation. It is also important to note that several of the proposed reforms are not yet finalised and remain subject to further government consultation and/or secondary legislation, and so it is important to remain up to date with developments.
For advice on any of the issues discussed in this update, or any other employment or HR related matter for schools, please contact Winckworth Sherwood’s dedicated Schools HR helpdesk on SchoolsHR@wslaw.co.uk or 0345 026 8690.
This briefing is not intended to be a definitive statement of the law and is correct at the time of publication. It should not be taken as a substitute for professional legal advice.