How to support parents of sick children

September marked Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, but the compassion it inspires should continue year-round.

We should continue to recognise the incredible parents who manage work responsibilities while caring for a child with cancer and other serious illnesses. A special mention must also go to the employers supporting them along the way. When workplaces lead with empathy, flexibility, and understanding, they do more than meet their legal obligations; they change lives for the better.

Statutory Leave Entitlements for Parents in the UK

As a quick refresher, there is a range of statutory rights that parents currently have in the UK, including:

Time off for dependants - If a dependent child has an emergency, employees are entitled to a reasonable period of time off, with no technical limit.

Parental leave - You can take up to 18 weeks of unpaid parental leave per child, including adopted children, up until their 18th birthday. Note that this is limited to four weeks per year.

Flexible working requests - Parents have the right to request flexible work arrangements in Britain, which can be crucial for appointments or when care needs are unpredictable. Northern Ireland has slightly different rules around this.

Carer’s Leave - Since April 2024, employees caring for a dependent with permanent or long-term needs have had the right to take up to one week of unpaid leave per year.
Unfortunately, the reality is that many families find that these policies fall short of what they really need when their child is seriously ill.

Ways to go beyond the minimum

It’s no secret that a culture of support and compassion builds loyalty. Here are some ways that employers can consider going above and beyond for staff with very sick children:

• Agile working - Creating an agile working system can be highly beneficial for parents managing a child’s treatment schedule.
• Engaging support services - Employee Assistance Programmes (EAPs), can be valuable tools that cover counselling and other services to help families and make a meaningful difference.
• Open communication - Ensure that managers and team leaders are extending the culture of empathy and compassion that you are trying to achieve. Businesses often offer empathy training to management for this purpose.
• Offering paid compassionate or carers’ leave - If it is feasible, consider offering some extra paid leave to reduce the financial burden on affected families.
  

Why does offering leave and flexibility for parents of sick children matter?

Whole families are impacted when a loved one, especially a child, has a serious illness. Between hospital stays, rehabilitation and adjustments to the home, the challenge of balancing work, finances, and the emotional toll can be too much to take.

Employers who approach their employees’ situations with flexibility and compassion demonstrate outstanding leadership, worthy of praise. Their help in tough times makes them worthy of a loyal, engaged and resilient workforce.

Final thought

Beyond Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, employers can make a real impact by reviewing their leave policies and discovering ways to support families in challenging times. Going beyond legal requirements could make a world of difference to a team member struggling to balance their regular work duties with their child’s wellbeing.