Are bank holidays included in the statutory holiday entitlement?

Your contract decides whether bank holidays come out of your holiday allowance or sit on top.

The law does not say whether bank holidays are included in an employee's holiday entitlement. Instead, the employer decides this in the employment contract.

"Including bank holidays" means they come out of the allowance. "Plus bank holidays" means they are on top. If the contract just says "5.6 weeks" and does not mention them, they come out of the allowance.

You cannot give less than the legal minimum of 5.6 weeks a year - for a full time employee, this is 28 days. "28 days including bank holidays" meets the minimum. "20 days plus the 8 bank holidays" does not, because it is less than 5.6 weeks.

For part-time staff, holiday is worked out pro rata. You cannot make someone take a bank holiday as leave if it falls on a day they do not normally work.

Further reading

  • Managing clashing holiday requests

    When several people want the same weeks off, the law decides more of it than fairness does: notice deadlines, the duty to let people take their leave, and the discrimination risk in 'first come, first served'.