The Right to Request itself is very limited in nature. It consists of:

• A right to request to work flexibly.
• A statutory request procedure.
• An obligation on the employer to consider that application properly.
• A limited number of grounds on which the employer can refuse the request.

Eligibility criteria for statutory right to request flexible working

Interestingly, although the scope of the statutory right is limited, many employers have chosen to offer the Right to Request on a wider basis. Employers which have agreed to make the Right to Request available to all their staff have generally reported favourable results in terms of staff retention and morale. Of course, this approach is likely to be easier for larger employers with flexible staffing requirements. It is inevitably smaller employers, which constitute the vast majority of UK employers, and those with a highly specialised workforce, which face more of a challenge in seeking to accommodate requests to work flexibly.

Who can make a request?

Be employed

Only employees are able to take advantage of the statutory right.

Have 26 weeks' continuous employment at the date the application is made

The usual rules regarding establishing continuity of service apply, so that service with an associated employer, or service prior to a TUPE transfer for example, will be included.

Not be an agency worker or a member of the armed forces

Not have made another application to work flexibly under the Right to Request Legislation during the preceding twelve months

Child carers

In addition to the criteria set out above, those individuals making a request in order to care for a child must satisfy the following criteria:

Be making the request in relation to a child under 17 years old (or 18 years old if the child is disabled)

A request can be made in respect of a disabled child under the age of 18. The meaning of disabled is restricted to those in receipt of disability living allowance. It is conceivable that a child could be suffering from a serious, potentially life-limiting illness, but would not qualify for disability living allowance. The parent of such a child would not be eligible to make a statutory request to work flexibly.

It is worth noting that the child must have been born at the time that the application is made.