If you have even one employee — full-time, part-time, or casual — the changes that took effect on 1 and 6 April 2026 will affect your business. This is the first major wave of the Employment Rights Act 2025, alongside the usual annual increases to the National Minimum Wage and statutory payments.
We've pulled together everything small business employers in Macclesfield and Cheshire need to know, in one place.
National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage — from 1 April 2026
The headline change is the increase to minimum wage rates across all age bands. These increases are larger than inflation, meaning a genuine real-terms pay rise for workers — and a genuine cost increase for employers.
| Category | 2025/26 rate | 2026/27 rate | Increase |
|---|---|---|---|
| National Living Wage (21+) | £12.21 | £12.71 | +4.1% |
| 18–20 year olds | £10.00 | £10.85 | +8.5% |
| 16–17 year olds | £7.55 | £8.00 | +6% |
| Apprentices | £7.55 | £8.00 | +6% |
| Accommodation offset (per day) | £10.66 | £11.10 | +4.1% |
Someone aged 21 or over working a standard 35-hour week on the National Living Wage will now earn at least £23,131 a year — up from £22,222 the previous year.
If your business is accredited with the Living Wage Foundation, note this is separate from the statutory National Living Wage. The voluntary Real Living Wage rose to £13.45 per hour (£14.80 in London) from 1 May 2026 — accredited employers are expected to implement this by that date.
Statutory Sick Pay — from 6 April 2026
This is one of the most significant practical changes for small employers. Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) has changed in two important ways:
- The rate has increased from £118.75 to £123.25 per week
- SSP is now payable from day one of sickness — the previous three-day waiting period has been abolished
- The Lower Earnings Limit has been removed for SSP purposes — employees who previously earned too little to qualify for SSP at all may now be entitled to it, calculated at the lower of the flat weekly rate or 80% of their average weekly earnings
If you have part-time or lower-paid staff who previously fell below the SSP earnings threshold, you may now have a sick pay liability for them that didn't exist before. Review your absence policies and make sure your payroll system has been updated to remove waiting days and apply the new earnings calculation correctly.
Family-related leave and pay — from 6 April 2026
Several family leave entitlements have changed:
- Statutory Paternity Leave and unpaid Parental Leave are now day-one rights — employees no longer need a minimum period of service to take this leave. Statutory Paternity Pay still requires 26 weeks' continuous service — only the leave entitlement itself is now day-one
- Statutory Maternity, Paternity, Adoption, Shared Parental and Parental Bereavement Pay all increased from £187.18 to £194.32 per week
- Maternity Allowance also rose to £194.32 per week
- A brand new entitlement — Bereaved Partner's Paternity Leave — allows a partner up to 52 weeks of unpaid leave if the child's primary carer dies. This is a day-one right with no service requirement
The Fair Work Agency
From April 2026, a new Fair Work Agency (FWA) has been established as a single body responsible for enforcing a wide range of employment rights, consolidating powers that were previously spread across different bodies. Its initial remit includes:
- National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage enforcement
- Statutory Sick Pay enforcement
- Holiday pay (with new record-keeping requirements — see below)
- Labour exploitation and modern slavery
Its powers are expected to expand further over time. For employers, this means a more coordinated and likely more rigorous approach to enforcement than existed previously. Getting your minimum wage and holiday pay compliance right matters more than ever — penalties for underpayment include repayment of arrears plus fines, and HMRC continues to publicly name employers found in breach.
New holiday pay record-keeping requirement
Employers are now required to keep records adequate to demonstrate compliance with workers' statutory holiday entitlement and holiday pay — and to retain these records for 6 years. If your current systems don't clearly evidence holiday accrual and payment, particularly for irregular-hours or part-time staff, now is the time to review this.
Tribunal awards and limitation periods
A number of changes affect employment tribunal claims from April 2026:
- The cap on the compensatory award for unfair dismissal increased from £118,223 to £123,543 — likely the final increase before the cap is removed entirely from 1 January 2027
- The Vento bands for injury to feelings awards in discrimination claims increased — the lower band now runs to £1,300–£12,600, middle band £12,600–£37,700
- The collective redundancy protective award maximum doubled from 90 days' pay to 180 days' pay per employee for breaches of consultation requirements
What's coming next — 2027 and beyond
The Employment Rights Act 2025 is being implemented in phases. Beyond the April 2026 changes, employers should be aware of further reforms landing from 1 January 2027:
- Unfair dismissal protection from day one — the qualifying period reduces from two years to six months, with a further reduction to zero anticipated
- Removal of the unfair dismissal compensation cap
- Tighter restrictions on "fire and rehire" — making this practice automatically unfair in most circumstances
- New rights for zero and low-hours workers — including a right to a contract reflecting actual hours worked, reasonable shift notice, and compensation for late cancellations
- Extended tribunal limitation periods — from 3 to 6 months for most claim types from October 2026
Larger employers (250+ staff) should also note that gender pay gap and menopause action plans, while only mandatory from 2027, are being introduced on a voluntary basis from April 2026.
Need help reviewing your payroll and policies?
We help small business clients across Macclesfield and Bollington stay compliant with payroll and employment changes without the stress. If you'd like a review of your current setup against the 2026 changes, get in touch.
Book a free 30-minute call →Your action checklist
- Update payroll systems to reflect the new National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage rates from 1 April 2026
- Audit staff ages to ensure the correct rate band is applied to each employee
- Update SSP processes — remove waiting days and apply the new £123.25 rate or 80% calculation
- Review which employees now qualify for SSP following removal of the Lower Earnings Limit
- Update family leave policies to reflect day-one paternity and parental leave rights
- Introduce a Bereaved Partner's Paternity Leave policy
- Review holiday pay record-keeping to ensure 6-year retention and adequate evidence of compliance
- If Living Wage Foundation accredited, implement the new Real Living Wage rates by 1 May 2026
This article is for general guidance only and does not constitute legal or professional advice. Employment law is complex and changing — please seek specific advice for your business. JAC Accountancy Solutions Limited is regulated by ICAEW (Membership No. 8650147) and does not provide employment law advice; we recommend consulting a qualified employment solicitor for legal matters alongside our payroll and accounting support.