Police Staff Council (PSC)
LGA, 18 Smith Square
London, SW1P 3HZ
Telephone: 020 7187 7340
Employers’ Side Secretary, Sarah Ward
e-mail: [email protected]
Unison Centre,130 Euston Road
London, NW1 2AY
Telephone: 020 7121 5272
Trade Union Side Secretary, Ben Priestley
e-mail: [email protected]
To: Police and Crime Commissioner
Force Personnel/HR Manager/Payroll Manager
Trade union branches
cc: PSC Members
Scotland and MPS (for information only)
30 April 2026
Joint circular 144 – Christmas holiday working 2026
Dear colleague
Boxing Day falls on a Saturday in 2026. Therefore, Monday 28 December 2026 automatically becomes a public holiday in lieu of Boxing Day.
In accordance with joint advice issued in previous years to deal with these circumstances, police forces are advised, that unless a local agreement regarding the above is already in place, working and pay arrangements should be as follows:
For those staff whose normal five-day week does not include Saturday or Sunday and who will not be working on 26 December, the Boxing Day holiday will be Monday 28 December.
For those staff who work a shift rota, where Boxing Day coincides with a rest day or free day, the rest/free day should be treated as a public holiday and in addition a substitute rest or free day shall be given.
The pay arrangements that should apply when the 26 December falls on a Saturday are that staff should be paid public holiday rates for working the 26 December, or the bank holiday in-lieu of these days, but not both.
Yours sincerely
Ben Priestley, Trade Union Side Secretary
David Algie, Employers’ Side Secretariat