Free careers advice moves into Jobcentres from 6 October 2026
From 6 October 2026 the National Careers Service has been merged into DWP, with around 500 careers advisers now working through Jobcentres. The advice is free and does not depend on benefits: it is available online and on 0800 072 0288, with face-to-face appointments starting later in October.
Four-day week in London: Lambeth prepares the capital’s first council trial
Lambeth council, run by the Greens since May, is preparing a trial four-day working week for its own staff — the first London borough to do so. Pay is to stay the same. No start date has been named. A year ago the government told English councils to drop such schemes, and the Conservative candidate for mayor has already asked why Londoners who work five days should pay for a council day off.
How much paid holiday you are entitled to in the UK: 28 days, bank holidays and what you are owed when you leave
Paid holiday here is counted in weeks, not days: 5.6 weeks a year. On a five-day week that is 28 days — and unless your contract says otherwise, all eight bank holidays come out of them. Here is what the law gives you: the figures for part-time and zero-hours work, how holiday pay is calculated, what applies in your first year, and why untaken leave must be paid even if you are dismissed for gross misconduct.
Sick pay in the UK in 2026: paid from day one, up to £123.25 a week
Since 6 April 2026 the three unpaid waiting days are gone and the earnings threshold has been scrapped: SSP is available to every eligible employee. The rate is 80% of average weekly earnings or £123.25 a week, whichever is lower, for up to 28 weeks. Who qualifies, when you need a fit note, what the self-employed can claim and where to complain if an employer refuses.
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Made redundant in the UK: how much you are owed and what to do if you are on a work visa
The statutory maximum is £22,530: £751 per week of service, up to 20 years, and only after two years in the job. The first £30,000 is tax free. And if you are on a Skilled Worker visa, redundancy leaves you 60 days or the remainder of your visa, whichever is shorter. Here is what you are owed, by when, and where to get free advice.
Working in England 2026: what jobs pay, what you keep, and how the work visa actually starts
The minimum wage in England is £12.71 an hour by law; median full-time pay is £39,039 a year, worth about £2,630 a month after tax. You can start work before your National Insurance number arrives, but never without the right to work. And the Skilled Worker visa starts with a sponsoring employer: £41,700 or your occupation’s going rate, whichever is higher.
October: employers start answering for how customers behave
From 30 October part of the Employment Rights Act 2025 takes effect: employers must take “all reasonable steps” against sexual harassment and become liable for harassment by third parties — customers, visitors, contractors. And from 1 October the tribunal time limit rises from three months to six.