UK Holiday Guide: How Many Days Off Do Brits Actually Get?

Hey everyone, it’s your Holiday Little Assistant here! So recently one of our readers hit me up with a question that’s actually way more common than you’d think: “How many days of holiday do people in the UK actually get?” Great question, right? Let’s break it down together.

First off, when we talk about holidays in the UK, we gotta separate two things: public holidays (what they call “bank holidays”) and the paid leave that employees get from their jobs. It might sound straightforward, but there’s some nuance here that’s worth understanding, especially if you’re planning a trip, thinking about moving there, or just curious how our friends across the pond live.

So, How Many Public Holidays Are There in the UK?

Okay, here’s where it gets interesting – the number isn’t the same across the whole UK! England and Wales have 8 permanent bank holidays. These include New Year’s Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, Early May Bank Holiday, Spring Bank Holiday, Summer Bank Holiday, Christmas Day, and Boxing Day. Scotland does things a little differently with 9 days – they have an extra day off for St. Andrew’s Day on November 30th. Northern Ireland gets even more with 10 public holidays, adding both St. Patrick’s Day (March 17th) and the Battle of the Boyne/Orangemen’s Day (July 12th). So the base number of nationwide days off varies by region, which is pretty important to know!

But wait, there’s more! These are just the standard ones. Sometimes the government declares an extra one-time bank holiday for special occasions, like a royal wedding or a jubilee. Remember the extra day off for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee? Yeah, that was one of those. So the total can occasionally be higher!

What About Paid Vacation Days?

Now, this is the real game-changer. By law, almost all workers in the UK are entitled to 5.6 weeks of paid holiday per year. This is known as “statutory annual leave.” If you work 5 days a week, that maths out to 28 days. And here’s the crucial part: this entitlement includes the public bank holidays. So your employer can count those 8 (or 9 or 10) bank holidays as part of your 28 days. Many employers do give the bank holidays off plus the full 28 days, but legally, they don’t have to. They just have to make sure you get your total 5.6 weeks. This means some people might have to work on a bank holiday and take another day off instead. It’s always best to check your contract!

To put it simply, a full-time worker in England could get 8 bank holidays + 20 additional days of paid leave to hit that 28-day total. But many companies offer more than the legal minimum as a benefit. It’s not uncommon to see 25-30 days of paid leave on top of the bank holidays, especially in corporate jobs. So the total number of days off can actually be pretty generous!

It’s also worth mentioning part-time workers. Their holiday is calculated proportionally. So if you work 3 days a week, you’d get 3/5ths of 5.6 weeks. It’s all based on your working pattern.

So, to summarize the whole UK holiday situation: The number of public bank holidays ranges from 8 to 10 days depending on where you are. But the real story is the statutory annual leave of 28 days for full-timers, which includes those public holidays. Many people end up with more than that through their employer, making the UK’s time-off package pretty solid compared to many other countries.

FAQpro – Thank you for reading, I hope this article can help you fully understand the UK holiday allowance, if you have more questions, please contact us.