UK bank holidays for 2026, 2027 and 2028

Decide whether bank holidays are inside the allowance or on top

Almost all workers are entitled to 5.6 weeks of paid holiday. An employer can include bank holidays in that amount or offer them in addition. GOV.UK sets out the Great Britain entitlement, while nidirect sets out the Northern Ireland position. The employment terms need to say which approach applies.

For a regular five-day worker, “28 days including bank holidays” and “20 days plus the bank holidays in the chosen calendar” can both meet the statutory floor. They do not leave the same number of days for the worker to choose freely, and the second wording can produce a different total when the calendar changes.

Check the whole contractual allowance, not the number of named holidays alone. A different working pattern, a special holiday or a leave year that catches Easter differently can change the practical answer.

Write down the rule for time off, working and pay

The contract or holiday policy should make five points clear:

1. Which national calendar applies.
2. Whether bank holidays are inside the annual allowance or on top.
3. Whether the workplace closes or people may be required to work.
4. Whether working attracts ordinary pay, enhanced pay or time off in lieu.
5. How substitute days and any local holidays are handled.

There is no general automatic right to paid leave or enhanced pay on a bank holiday. The answer comes from the contract, the policy and any term established through custom and practice.

If a Great Britain employer closes and requires workers to use annual leave, Acas explains the notice and contract checks. Northern Ireland employers should use the separate nidirect holiday guidance.

Apply the rule to the person's working pattern

Start with the person's total entitlement and usual working days. If bank holidays sit inside the allowance, a bank holiday can use leave when it falls on a day the person normally works and the workplace closes. It should not use leave when it falls on a day they do not normally work.

If the contract offers bank holidays as an additional benefit, part-time workers should receive that benefit proportionately. Do not let the weekday on which holidays happen to fall decide who receives the better benefit. Use the separate Acas guidance for Great Britain or nidirect guidance for Northern Ireland.

When somebody changes hours or working days, record the effective date and recalculate from that point. Do not rewrite earlier leave as though the new pattern had always applied.

Plan closures and cover before the date arrives

Decide early whether the business will close, run normally or use reduced cover. Check approved leave, working patterns and any contractual requirement to work before telling the team what will happen.

For Great Britain, Acas says an employer directing workers to take leave should normally give at least twice as many calendar days' notice as the leave it requires. Check the contract before changing an established closure or working arrangement. Northern Ireland has its own notice route, so keep the jurisdiction attached to the decision.

Record the calendar used, the closure or staffing decision, the notice given and any agreed alternative day. That gives managers one answer and gives payroll the information it needs.

Recheck special holidays and each new leave year

Special bank holidays can be announced for a single occasion. Whether that creates another contractual paid day depends on the wording already agreed. A term promising the statutory minimum does not automatically grow because another bank holiday is proclaimed. Acas explains how the contract controls the answer.

Scotland also has local public holidays set by councils. The Scottish Government distinguishes these from national bank holidays, and they can differ by area. If the organisation observes one, record that local rule rather than adding it silently to every Scottish worker's calendar.

Review the setup when a new calendar year is published, a special holiday is announced, a person changes location or working pattern, or the organisation changes when it opens. Link policies to the maintained calendar instead of copying dates into a document that will soon be stale.