Employer delaying flexible working decision before maternity leave and nursery planning

[JustAnOrdinaryHuman]

I'm going on maternity leave in 5 weeks time & at the start of last month I submitted a flexible working request for my return. Essentially nursery places near me are a nightmare & I need to know what hours I'm going back to in order to secure a place now. I can't go back on my current hours, the childcare would be too expensive & I'd basically be working to just pay the fees.

I currently work 34 hours over 4 days, I requested I drop to 28 over 3 & half days, with 3 full office days & half a day from home. This way I only need 3 nursery days rather than 4, I have family who can help with a half day.

I felt this was a good compromise where I could make it work but I was also thinking about the needs to the business, I'd rather just 3 days, but happy with this as a middle way option.

Here's my issue, work haven't said no, they have said they won't even look at the request until the end of January 2027 at the earliest - I plan to return to work March 2027. I was under the impression they had to let me know within two months of me submitting the request & if they didn't they had to ask me to agree to a delay in decision.

If they can't let me know, I won't be able to sort the nursery out, so I will have to look at leaving instead. I wanted to avoid this stress & being able to just switch off from work for my maternity leave & come back ready to work. I feel like it shows how little they value me.

Any tips on how to manage this going forwards?

There is a statutory requirement for them to give you a decision within 2 months

I’d literally just send them a link to the government guidance

Please see this link https://www.gov.uk/flexible-working/after-the-application they need to give you a reply within 2 months of your written request.

They legally have to give you an abswer within 2 months of your request ... send them a link to the .gov page where it advises this.

Oh that's impressive of them! As others have said, they have to give you a deicison within 2 months.

The business may not be able to forecast that far ahead at this time depending on the industry and your role given current world events. Especially if your company depends on contracts that are coming up for renewal in that time frame. I would get on nursery wait lists now and worry about tweaking days after NYE 2027.

I think this may be a if you want a reply now, it will be a no. If you wait, we may know enough to say yes.

I think there is a danger if you insist they look at it now, they will either reject it on the basis of not knowing business need in a year's time, or they will agree it and change your hours straight away. Which you won't want.

Just to say that you would never ‘be working to just pay the fees.’

Childcare is a joint expense.
You will be getting paid sick leave
Paid annual leave
NI credits
And building up your pension.

I am all for flexi working and do compressed hours myself but just wanted to share the above!

I would also book nursery full time or for whatever current plan is - then as soon as you know ammend it.

Just get on nursery waiting list for maximum you may need, then tweak it when you get offered a space. That's what most parents do

This.

I did as others suggest and get a nursery place for the max and then put your flex request in closer to the time. Most businesses would just reject this as it would be difficult to know if it will be doable a year away.

Agree with what PPs have said about putting your name down on the nursery waiting list for the maximum, e.g. 5 full days. I did this, then once I knew my flexible working request had been confirmed I gave the nursery notice to reduce the hours. I think they asked for 8 weeks notice, and it was fine. Hope you get an answer soon though, it is a worry when things are uncertain.

Thanks for all the replies.

They could easily accommodate my request without any significant impact on the team & the work load is a very stable thing, so not likely to be at all different next year, so it's disappointing that they won't even meet with me to discuss it.

With regards to booking the maximum days at the nursery & then giving notice, it's a small local nursery & that would have an impact to them & seems unfair so I won't be doing that.

I've decided to book the nursery place for the reduced days & hope for the best, if they say no down the line, I will use a juggle of annual leave/family to cover the extra day whilst I job hunt & then give my notice. It's not a job I can feasibly do 4 days a week with a baby, one for the childcare costs & one for the work/home balance.

@Tabbers79 I literally would be if I did the extra day, my pay for that day would be less than the extra childcare costs, I'm not on a high wage & due to the way childcare funding works atm, using the nursery 4 days a week instead of 3 is double the cost. Yes it's a joint cost, but it's still the same amount coming out of the joint income which is still more than I can contribute by working in that time, so it would cost less to stay at home.