Creating a supportive workplace
You may be called upon to support employees who have experienced miscarriage. Their managers may need support too, especially if they have also suffered a loss in the past. They may need information about their responsibilities. It can help if you have a policy in place already.
If a baby is stillborn after 24 weeks gestation, the law and employees’ rights are currently very different – this is set to change in 2027 when pre-24 week pregnancy loss is included in bereavement leave in the UK. We await updates on what the duration and eligibility of this leave might look like for England, Scotland and Wales, but Northern Ireland launched their two weeks of paid leave in April 2026.
Below are just some of the ways that you can support your teams, and employees affected by loss.
Time off and rights to leave
- 79% of respondents said that their employer had not made them aware of their entitlement to protected pregnancy-related sickness.
- Only 5% told us they did not require any leave from work. This shows just how important it is that guidance on leave for pregnancy loss is clear and available to those who need it.
You can find out more about how time off after pregnancy loss should be handled here.
Developing a supportive workplace culture
Sadly there are still many organisations where women and partners do not feel safe discussing their plans to try to have a baby, or their pregnancy losses – our Miscarriage in the UK report showed that 24% felt that their loss negatively affected their opportunities at work.
A miscarriage policy is a good start but it’s unlikely to be enough.
Your organisation needs to create a culture of trust and make it clear through action and policy that women planning a pregnancy will not face discrimination. Until this is done, it is unlikely that all women who suffer miscarriage will feel able to seek the support they need.
It’s also important to foster a culture of openness and support, so that those going through the heartbreak of pregnancy loss feel supported, and also unafraid of being penalised in any way.
A good starting point can be booking organisation-wide awareness training, partaking in awareness days, and having a good hub of external support to refer to.
Year-round support and awareness
Highlighting awareness days and events is a great way to recognize those affected, but also to raise awareness and start conversations.
For those affected by pregnancy loss, Baby Loss Awareness Week is a key time of year – held on 9-15 October each year.
The week works to raise awareness of the impact of pregnancy and baby loss, physically and mentally, the individuality of experience, but also the resources that people can use to feel better informed to support loved ones or colleagues.
However, like with any awareness event, the work and support should extend year-round. Like any other grief, pregnancy and baby loss is ever present, but can show up on more difficult days.
We’ve included a calendar of key dates to mark in their own right, but also to check in on those affected by pregnancy loss who may find them painful.