Holiday pay and pay during school holidays are not necessarily the same thing. Your contract and working pattern determine how paid leave is earned and when the money reaches you.
IN PLAIN ENGLISH
Ask whether holiday pay is paid when you take leave or separately alongside wages. An amount described as “included” needs a clear breakdown; it is not automatically extra money on top of the advertised rate.
Separate leave from gaps in bookings
A school closure does not by itself guarantee wages for the whole holiday. Equally, having gaps between assignments does not remove statutory paid-holiday rights. Check your employment arrangement, the holiday year and the balance your employer records.
This guide’s legal explanation covers Great Britain. Northern Ireland has separate holiday rules. It is general information, not an individual entitlement calculation.
Two payment arrangements to understand
Some employers pay holiday pay when leave is taken. For qualifying irregular-hours and part-year workers in Great Britain, rolled-up holiday pay can instead be paid with wages under the rules for leave years beginning on or after 1 April 2024. It must be separately identified, and the worker must still be able to take leave.
The government’s detailed guidance explains who qualifies. Do not assume everyone called a supply worker is automatically in the same category. Ask payroll to identify the contractual working pattern it has used.
What does 12.07% mean?
For the qualifying arrangements, the rules use 12.07% in specified holiday calculations. It is not a universal instruction to add that percentage to every day rate. Entitlement in hours and payment in money are also different questions.
As a simplified illustration only, a qualifying rolled-up arrangement with £150 basic gross pay and holiday pay added at 12.07% would show about £18.11 holiday pay separately. If the advertised £150 already includes holiday pay, adding £18.11 again would double-count it. Ask for the actual breakdown and rounding used by payroll.
Check your payslip and holiday record
Look for basic pay, holiday pay or accrued holiday balance, deductions and the period covered. If an umbrella pays you, first distinguish its assignment income from your wages; see PAYE or umbrella?. Keep the written quotation so you can check whether holiday pay was included or additional.
If you think holiday pay is missing, ask payroll to explain the calculation and correct any error. Do not wait until the end of a long placement to raise a recurring discrepancy.
What this means for you
Ask: “What is my holiday year, how do I request leave, how is entitlement calculated and when is it paid?” Budget separately for periods without bookings. Use day rate versus salary to compare annual income without counting holiday pay twice.
Frequently asked questions
Can an employer say holiday pay is included without showing it?
A vague assurance is not enough to understand your pay. Where lawful rolled-up holiday pay is used, it must be separately itemised. Ask for a corrected explanation or payslip if necessary.
Does an agency’s holiday system override equal-treatment rights?
Do not assume so. Qualifying Agency Worker Regulations rights may affect annual-leave terms. Ask for advice on the actual assignment and agreement if statutory and contractual explanations conflict.
Related guides
Sources and further reading
Last reviewed: 20 September 2026. Official guidance and individual arrangements can change.