The Employment Rights Bill 2024 (the Bill) was hailed as “the biggest upgrade to workers’ rights in a generation”. It aims to modernise employment law and will mean a marked shift for the education sector from existing practices.
For the Bill to receive Royal Assent and become law both the House of Commons (HOC) and House of Lords (HOL) had to agree. Convention has tended to be that where they disagree, the HOL would step down. Somewhat surprisingly, this was not happening so we entered a period of ‘ping-pong’ between the two. The HOL disagreed on various key matters, one being the proposal that unfair dismissal rights apply from day one of employment, insisting on a six-month qualifying period.
This led to the Government convening a series of conversations between trade unions and business representatives. On 27 November 2025, the Government finally agreed that reducing the qualifying period for unfair dismissal from 2 years to six months was a workable package.
As a result, day one rights for unfair dismissal have been abandoned together with proposals for an Initial Period of Employment, with an indication the six-month qualifying period will be brought in from January 2027. However, in a completely new development, the Government announced a proposal that the compensation cap on unfair dismissal should be lifted, confirming on the 5 December 2025, the statutory cap would be removed entirely.
The Bill returned to the HOL on 10 December 2025. All contentious issues were agreed with the only remaining issue being the proposed removal of the cap on compensatory awards. The HOL rejected this in favour of a requirement for the Government to conduct a review of the issue in light of this major change at such a late stage.
On 18 December 2025, the HOL backed down and the Bill was passed receiving Royal assent and becoming the Employment Rights Act 2025.
There has been changes to the ACAS Early Conciliation period since 1 December 2025. It is currently mandatory for claimants to contact ACAS in relation to most employment tribunal claims and, if both parties agree, to enter a period of early conciliation before a tribunal claim can be issued.
High levels of claims and lack of resources are putting ACAS under pressure, making it difficult for them to conciliate. Employment Tribunal statistics published in June 2025 confirmed an increase by 23% in receipt of single claims for the same period a year ago.
Currently, conciliation can last for up to six weeks. This has been extended to twelve weeks. This period will operate to stop the clock on the limitation period for issuing claims. School leaders should be aware that this may mean delays of at least nine months to a year until you receive an employment tribunal claim, potentially longer with tribunal administration as well as proposed increases in limitation periods from three to six months. It will be important to ensure that evidence and documentation is kept for sufficient periods to account for this and reviewing and updating your Data Retention Policies to reflect this position.
The most common employment tribunal claims are for unfair dismissal, which account for nearly a quarter of all cases. This trend is expected to continue and potentially increase further with the Bill changes.
To dismiss fairly, employers must have a potentially fair reason to dismiss, such as conduct, and follow a fair procedure. They must also be able to demonstrate that they acted reasonably in treating the chosen reason as sufficient to justify dismissal.
Currently, employees must have at lest two years’ continuous service to bring an ordinary unfair dismissal claim. If a claim is successful, the compensation award for such claims is capped at the lower of 52 weeks’ gross pay of the statutory cap, currently £118,223.
A fundamental change to the law on ordinary unfair dismissal, with major implications for all employers, including Trusts, Academies and schools.
It was proposed that the two-year qualifying period will be repealed and, instead, all employees should have unfair dismissal rights from day one of employment. In conjunction with this, it was suggested this would be eased by a new ‘Initial Period of Employment’ (see below).
In a radical change, as above, instead, the Initial Period of Employment has been removed and the two-year qualifying period will be replaced with a six month qualifying period.
The Government has committed to ensure that the unfair dismissal qualifying period can only be varied by primary legislation, this means any changes will be more difficult.
Also, the right to request written reasons for dismissal (upon request), previously only available after two years’ service, will become available after six months service.
The UK has seen varying periods of continuous employment to bring an unfair dismissal claim, initially one year then increasing to two. Never has this been a right from day one. Even a move to a six-month period will be a significant shift for employers.
We may also see a further radical changes with the cap on compensation being lifted. The government has committed to publish an impact assessment, including an assessment of the removal of the cap, before commencement of regulations. The impact assessment provides some reassurance, but it remains to be seen what the overall impact of these changes will be on claims, the tribunal system, employers and their businesses.
Details of the expected consultations and impact assessment for the removal of the unfair dismissal compensation cap will follow. It will be important for Trusts, Academies and schools to take part in the consultations so your views are taken into account.
Currently, there is no legislation governing probationary periods. These are usually governed by contractual terms.
Recognising concerns from employers on the proposal of day one rights, the Bill proposed a new concept: a statutory probationary period or ‘Initial Period of Employment’ (IPE). A preference for the IPE to be around nine months was indicated, the exact length and detail around this was to be confirmed and set by regulation. This has now been removed entirely and will not proceed.
As you are typically people-intensive employers: teaching staff, support staff, pastoral staff, boarding/residential staff, part-time staff, temporary or fixed-term staff, all may be affected. The proposed changes will therefore have meaningful consequences.
1. Reduced margin for “trial and error” in hiring, especially for new starters
Schools often hire staff for the start of term, sometimes after short recruitment windows, especially for roles like teaching assistants, cover supervisors, boarding/residential assistants, part-time tutors, etc.
Schools have had the security of a two-year buffer before a dismissal over performance or suitability might be challenged. Once the provisions of the Act commence, that buffer largely disappears as it will reduce to only six months. As a result:
This could impact hiring flexibility and time periods required during hiring processes — which is often important for schools dealing with fluctuating student numbers, part-time roles, or flexible staffing.
2. Increased administrative burden and need for more robust HR procedures
To manage the risk, schools will need more formal, careful, and documented HR practices not only from the first day of employment but during the application and interview process:
Collectively, this raises the bar for a specific need for strong HR support, which may be challenging for smaller schools with lean HR teams or few dedicated HR resources.
3. Potential increase in grievances, tribunals and cost
Once unfair dismissal becomes available after six months:
4. Implications for certain categories of school staff
Some roles common in schools may be particularly affected:
The Bill now Act, represents a paradigm shift in UK employment law. For schools, a sector with a diverse workforce, seasonal cycles, and a mix of permanent, part-time, temporary and term-time roles, the changes will bring both considerable risk and opportunity.
If schools do nothing, they risk facing greater legal exposure, administrative chaos, staffing difficulties, increased cost, and reputational damage. If they engage proactively, revising procedures, strengthening recruitment and induction, investing in HR capacity, and embedding fair and transparent policies, they can not only minimise risk, but also build a stronger, more stable, and more supportive staffing environment.
In short, for independent schools, the Act is something to prepare for, not something to wait and react to. Planning now will pay dividends. Further, by engaging early, schools can influence via consultations, sector bodies, umbrella organisations and trade associations how the regulations and any statutory codes are shaped, especially in ways that reflect the particular needs of education settings.
To book an appointment or to discuss this further, please contact the Employment Law team on [email protected], 01732 770660
This article is for general information purposes only and does not constitute legal or professional advice. All information was correct at the time of publication; however, the law may have changed since then. For the most up-to-date advice, please contact us directly. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for actions taken based on the information in this article.
