Sickness Absence Policy: A Practical Employer's Guide for 2026
What your policy should include, what changed in April 2026, and how to update an old policy without starting again.
Most small businesses don't need a complicated 40-page sickness procedure. You need clear rules that employees understand, managers can apply consistently, and someone remembers to update when the law changes.
This guide explains what a practical sickness absence policy should contain, what changed in April 2026, and what to check in a policy you already have — so you can bring it up to date without commissioning a full legal rewrite.
Do you need a sickness absence policy?
No single law says "you must have a sickness absence policy." But three overlapping legal duties mean you need one in practice:
- Employment Rights Act 1996 — the written statement of particulars must cover terms relating to incapacity for work and sick pay. If your handbook is silent on this, it is missing information the law requires you to provide.
- Equality Act 2010 — disability-related absence must be handled with reasonable adjustments. A policy applied blind to this can create a significant discrimination risk.
- UK GDPR — sickness records are special category health data. You need a documented lawful basis and handling rules for collecting and storing them.
In practical terms
Yes — every employer should have one. A sickness absence policy is where these three duties get consolidated into one document employees can actually follow. Without one, every absence is handled ad hoc, and inconsistency is what makes decisions hard to justify later.
What changed in April 2026
The Employment Rights Act 2025 made two changes to Statutory Sick Pay that took effect on 6 April 2026. These are current law, so a handbook written before then now describes SSP incorrectly:
1. SSP is payable from day one
The three "waiting days" are gone. If your policy still says SSP is payable "from the fourth day of absence," it is out of date and tells employees they are entitled to less than the law provides.
2. The lower earnings limit is removed
All employees are now eligible for SSP regardless of earnings. Lower earners receive a percentage of normal earnings where that is below the SSP rate. Any policy that references a "lower earnings limit" qualifying threshold is out of date.
Practical tip: state the mechanics, not the figures. SSP rates change with government upratings each April, so link to GOV.UK's SSP page for current rates rather than hard-coding a number that expires.
Does your policy still mention three waiting days or the lower earnings limit?
Paste it into Bounda and see exactly what needs changing — in minutes.
A practical sickness absence policy checklist
Compare each item against your current policy. We've tagged them so you can tell a genuine legal gap from an optional improvement.
Reporting sickness
RequiredWhat the policy should say: Who employees contact, when they must make contact, and how they should do it.
Why it matters: Everyone knows what is expected, and managers are less likely to apply different rules to different people.
Example: “Tell your manager as soon as possible” is vague. “Telephone your line manager before your normal start time on the first day of absence” is much easier to follow — and to apply consistently.
Self-certification and fit notes
RequiredWhat the policy should say: Self-certification covers the first 7 calendar days. From day 8 you can require a fit note.
Why it matters: Since 2022 fit notes can be issued by nurses, occupational therapists, pharmacists and physiotherapists as well as doctors, so your wording should not say “a doctor’s note” only.
Sick pay terms
RequiredWhat the policy should say: SSP mechanics (day-one payment, all earnings levels) plus any company sick pay: how much, for how long, and whether it is discretionary or contractual.
Why it matters: Ambiguity here creates contractual entitlements by custom and practice.
Example: If managers regularly approve full pay even though the policy calls it discretionary, employees may come to expect that treatment. Your written policy and your actual practice should match.
Return-to-work interviews
RecommendedWhat the policy should say: A short conversation after every absence, not just long ones.
Why it matters: They cut repeat absence, surface underlying issues early, and create the contemporaneous record you will want if things later escalate.
Short-term vs long-term absence definitions
RecommendedWhat the policy should say: A clear threshold (commonly 4 weeks for long-term) that triggers a different process.
Why it matters: “Manager’s discretion” is not a threshold — it is an inconsistency generator. A clear line keeps decisions comparable.
Absence triggers, applied with judgment
RecommendedWhat the policy should say: Formal review points based on frequency or duration are fine, but say how context is considered.
Why it matters: Disability-related and pregnancy-related absence must not count towards disciplinary triggers.
Example: An employee reaches a trigger because of several migraine-related absences. The trigger can prompt a conversation, but it should not automatically produce a warning — the manager first needs to understand whether the condition could amount to a disability and whether an adjustment is appropriate.
Reasonable adjustments process
RequiredWhat the policy should say: Not a good-intentions paragraph but an operational process: who decides, what evidence is needed, and the timescale.
Why it matters: This is one of the most important parts to get right, and it is essential if a decision is later challenged.
Health data handling
RequiredWhat the policy should say: Say what you collect, where it is stored, who can see it, and how long you keep it.
Why it matters: Sickness records are special category data under UK GDPR. If software flags absence patterns automatically, say so and provide for human review.
Holiday during sickness
Depends on your businessWhat the policy should say: How holiday accrues during long-term sickness and whether leave can be carried over.
Why it matters: Relevant mainly if you have staff on extended absence; worth a line so managers are not improvising.
The Bradford Factor can help — but it can't make the decision for you
The Bradford Factor (S² × D: spells of absence squared, times total days) is the most common absence trigger in UK handbooks. A score can tell you when an absence pattern needs reviewing. It cannot tell you why the absences happened, whether an adjustment is needed, or whether formal action would be fair.
Disability-related absence must not drive the score
If absences linked to a disability count towards a Bradford trigger that leads to a warning or dismissal, that can amount to discrimination arising from disability under the Equality Act 2010. A defensible policy discounts disability- and pregnancy-related absence and routes every trigger through a human decision.
Takeaway: use absence scores to start a conversation, not to finish one.
We've answered the legality question in full in Is the Bradford Factor legal? — and for a worked example of how this goes wrong, read our sickness absence policy case study.
Long-term absence and ill-health dismissal
Dismissing for long-term sickness (a capability dismissal) is potentially fair, but only at the end of a documented process:
- Up-to-date medical evidence, usually an occupational health report
- Genuine consultation with the employee about prognosis and options
- Consideration of reasonable adjustments and suitable alternative roles
- A clear warning that dismissal is being considered before it happens
Timing matters: from 1 January 2027 the unfair dismissal qualifying period drops from two years to six months, so far more ill-health dismissals will be tribunal-eligible. Getting the process right becomes essential if a decision is later challenged.
When to get professional advice
Updating your general sickness policy is something most businesses can manage without commissioning a bespoke legal review. An individual case can be different. Consider specialist HR or legal advice before:
- dismissing someone for ill health
- a case where disability is disputed
- a situation where suitable reasonable adjustments are unclear
A sensible division of labour: Bounda keeps the policy current, managers use it to follow a consistent process, and specialists handle the genuinely complex or high-risk cases.
How Bounda helps you update your sickness policy
Start with what you already have
Paste in your existing sickness policy. You do not need to rebuild your handbook from scratch.
See what needs attention
Bounda identifies outdated wording, missing processes and areas that may create unnecessary risk.
Update the wording
Generate a clearer version that reflects current requirements while keeping your company’s tone and approach.
Understand every change
Review the findings, plain-English explanations and source citations before you accept anything.
Stay current
When employment law changes, Bounda shows you which parts of your handbook may be affected.
Bounda helps with the routine work of checking, explaining and updating your policies — so you can reserve professional legal advice for the cases that genuinely require it.
Frequently Asked Questions about UK Sickness Absence Policies
Is a sickness absence policy legally required in the UK?
There is no rule requiring a standalone document called a "sickness absence policy". However, the Employment Rights Act 1996 requires written information about sick pay and sickness procedures, the Equality Act 2010 requires reasonable adjustments for disability-related absence, and UK GDPR governs how you handle health data. For most businesses, a clear sickness policy is the simplest way to bring all of that together - so in practical terms, yes, every employer should have one.
When is Statutory Sick Pay payable in 2026?
From 6 April 2026, Statutory Sick Pay is payable from the first day of sickness absence: the three waiting days were removed by the Employment Rights Act 2025. The lower earnings limit was removed at the same time, so all employees are eligible regardless of earnings, with lower earners receiving a percentage of their normal earnings where that is less than the SSP rate.
How many days can an employee self-certify sickness?
Employees can self-certify for the first 7 calendar days of sickness absence. From the 8th day, an employer can require a fit note (Statement of Fitness for Work) from a GP, hospital doctor, or since 2022 other healthcare professionals including nurses, occupational therapists, pharmacists and physiotherapists.
Is the Bradford Factor legal in the UK?
The Bradford Factor formula itself is legal - it is just a way of scoring absence frequency. What can be unlawful is applying it mechanically: triggering disciplinary action from the score alone without considering whether absences were disability-related (requiring reasonable adjustments under the Equality Act 2010) or pregnancy-related. Use an absence score to start a conversation, not to finish one.
Can I dismiss an employee for sickness absence?
Yes, capability dismissal for ill health is potentially fair, but the bar is high: you need a fair process including medical evidence, consultation with the employee, consideration of adjustments and alternative roles, and warnings where appropriate. If the underlying condition is a disability, you must also show you made reasonable adjustments first. From January 2027 unfair dismissal protection applies after six months of service, so process discipline matters more than ever. This is a situation where specialist advice is usually worth the cost.
What should a sickness absence policy include?
At minimum: how and when to report sickness, self-certification and fit note requirements, sick pay terms (SSP and any company sick pay), return-to-work interview arrangements, definitions of short-term and long-term absence, any absence triggers and how discretion is applied, reasonable adjustment processes for disability-related absence, and how health data is handled under UK GDPR.
Check your sickness absence policy
Paste in your existing policy and see what may need updating.
7-day free trial, no credit card required.