Make work pay - even when children are ill

Clare, Sandra and Heseltine Institute for Public Policy, Practice and Place (2026) Make work pay - even when children are ill [Report]

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Executive Summary

“Illness is neither an indulgence for which people have to pay, nor an offence for which they should be penalised, but a misfortune, the cost of which should be shared by the community”. Aneurin Bevan Key takeaways • The UK is one of only a handful of OECD countries that does not compensate parents who cannot earn money when caring for a sick child. • Nations that do compensate parents when their children are ill demonstrate that paid leave stabilises household income, limits the transmission of illnesses in workplaces, and strengthens maternal employment. • Recognising childhood illness as a predictable aspect of parenting would strengthen policy interventions to support sustained parental labour market participation. • Embedding childhood illness within flexible working rights, paid leave, and taxation frameworks would reduce the current financial penalties borne disproportionately by mothers, lone parents, low-paid workers and the self-employed. • Further research is needed to explore how parents navigate work and childhood illness. This can be used to support the embedding of health considerations into policymaking across all sectors, recognising that social, environmental, and economic conditions drive health outcomes.

Item Type:	Report
Depositing User:	Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited:	08 Jun 2026 13:20
Last Modified:	14 Jul 2026 11:24
DOI:	10.17638/03194541
URI:	https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3194541
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