A WOKINGHAM woman who campaigned tirelessly after her son’s death will now see her hopes become reality for parents in the same position.
Lucy Herd has been pushing for a reformation of bereavement laws for 10 years after her son drowned, just before his second birthday.
Jack’s Law is named in memory of her son, and will see working parents granted the legal right to two weeks’ paid bereavement leave if they lose a child under the age of 18 or suffer a stillbirth from 24 weeks of pregnancy.
This is the most generous offer of parental bereavement pay and leave in the world, and is set to take effect from Monday, April 6.
Ms Herd said: “When I heard it was going to be called Jack’s Law, I just cried. I was full of mixed emotions, it was such a bittersweet feeling. I was blown away.
“When I started this campaign 10 years ago after the death of my son Jack, I always hoped that a positive change would happen in his memory. I wanted to find positives out of the negatives.”
Ms Herd discovered the difficulty of managing bereavement after Jack’s death, when her immediate family were called back to work.
“I discovered there was no legislation about employees taking time off in the case of a child’s death,” said Ms Herd. “Workplaces ranged from 24 hours to three days, and then the rest of the time was taken as sick leave.
“Once everyone around me had to returned to work, it was horrendous. I was alone again.
Luckily I still had to keep a routine and get my two other children to school.”
Ms Herd hopes that from her campaigning, parents can now be better protected if they experience the loss of their child.
“In the immediate aftermath of a child dying, parents have to cope with their own loss, the grief of their wider family, including other children, as well as a vast amount of administrative paperwork and other arrangements.
“A sudden or accidental death may require a post-mortem or inquest; there is a funeral to arrange; and there are many other organisations to contact, from schools to benefit offices.
“Now, I hope that employers and employees have a better understanding of the effects of grief.”
Ms Herd called Jack’s Law a foundation block, from which to build future policies. “You have to take the leave within the first 52 weeks,” she added.
Parents will be able to take leave as a single block of two weeks, or as two separate weeks at different times across the year.
This means they can match their leave to the times they need it most, which could be in the early days or over the first anniversary.
Having helped workplaces better manage bereavement, Ms Herd now hopes to do the same with schools — after the experiences of her two children when they lost their little brother.
She is currently working with The Emmbrook School and St Crispins to create a bereavement policy.
“Children can be let down by the education system when it comes to grief. I’m hoping to create a proactive not a reactive policy, because dealing with grief in secondary school is horrendous.
“I want to start locally and then move nationally to make this happen.”
Ms Herd’s oldest son (23) is now training to be a lifeguard in hopes to make a positive impact following his brother’s death.
Sarah Harris, director of bereavement support and education at Child Bereavement UK said: “Child Bereavement UK welcomes this change in legislation and the recognition it gives to the impact of the death of a child.
“The opportunity for leave at a time that feels right for bereaved parents will help reduce a potential source of additional stress, and paid leave will give time to make decisions based on need rather than financial situation.”
Around 7,500 child deaths, including around 3,000 stillbirths happen in the UK every year. It is estimated that this new entitlement will help to support around 10,000 parents a year.
The new law arrives ahead of the government’s new Employment Bill, announced in the Queen’s Speech in December, which will introduce further measures to benefit workers and businesses including carer’s leave and neonatal pay.
