How the calculator works
It uses the “pot of hours” method. A full-timer gets every bank holiday off, so a part-timer gets the same bank holiday time scaled to their hours, whichever days they work:
- Full-time bank holiday hours = the number of bank holidays in the leave year × the hours in a full-time day.
- Their share = their weekly hours ÷ the hours in a full-time week.
- Their pot = full-time bank holiday hours × their share.
- The difference = their pot − the hours they would have worked on the bank holidays that fall on their days.
A positive difference is time off still to give them: they book it on another day. A negative difference means their working days catch more than a fair share of bank holidays. Days are shown at the length of their average working day.
Worked examples
England and Wales, January to December 2027: 8 bank holidays. A full-time week is 37.5 hours over five 7.5-hour days, so a full-timer gets 8 × 7.5 = 60 hours off.
| Part-timer | Pot | Bank holidays on their days | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday to Friday, 7.5 hours a day (22.5 hours, 0.6 of full time) | 60 × 0.6 = 36h | Fri 1 Jan and Good Friday 26 Mar = 15h | 21h (2.8 days) to book on other days |
| Monday to Wednesday, 7.5 hours a day (22.5 hours, 0.6 of full time) | 60 × 0.6 = 36h | Five Mondays and Tue 28 Dec = 45h | 9h over (1.2 days) |
Same hours, very different luck: the Monday worker would get three times the bank holiday time of the Friday worker if you simply gave everyone the days that land on their pattern. The pot evens it out.
With uneven days it works the same way. Someone who works 4 hours on Monday and 8 on Thursday does 12 hours, or 0.32 of full time. In England and Wales in 2026 their pot is 8 × 7.5 × 0.32 = 19.2 hours. New Year’s Day (a Thursday, 8 hours) and five Monday bank holidays (4 hours each) come to 28 hours, so they are 8.8 hours over.
Bank holidays are not an extra legal right
We checked these points on GOV.UK and nidirect on 26 October 2026:
- Bank and public holidays do not have to be given as paid leave. An employer can count them as part of a worker’s 5.6 weeks of statutory holiday (GOV.UK: holiday entitlement).
- Part-time workers must not be treated less favourably than comparable full-time workers, and that includes holidays. Some benefits are given pro rata, in proportion to hours worked (GOV.UK: part-time workers’ rights).
- nidirect puts it plainly for Northern Ireland: if the employer gives extra time off on bank holidays, a part-timer should get it pro rata too, even if the bank holiday does not fall on their usual working day (nidirect: holiday entitlements).
So the pot is not set by law. It is one fair way to share bank holidays between full-timers and part-timers. Your contracts say whether bank holidays are on top of the annual allowance or part of it.
Using the result with your allowance
- Allowance plus bank holidays. The pot is their bank holiday time. Bank holidays on their days use it up, and any hours left over are booked as time off on other days.
- Allowance including bank holidays. Their pro-rata allowance already holds their share. Take each bank holiday that falls on a working day off the allowance, and the rest is theirs to book. The pro-rata holiday calculator works out that allowance.
How many bank holidays each leave year has
| Leave year | England and Wales | Scotland | Northern Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 8 | 10 | 10 |
| 2027 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
| Apr 2026 to Mar 2027 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
| Apr 2027 to Mar 2028 | 6 | 8 | 8 |
Scotland’s 2026 figure includes the World Cup bank holiday on 15 June. The calculator lists each date with its name. For the full calendar, see GOV.UK bank holidays.