Statutory sick pay (SSP) is paid to employees by their employers for up to 28 weeks in any period of sickness lasting for four or more days. You do not need to have paid national insurance contributions to be entitled to it. You can work full time or part time but must earn at least £120 a week. SSP is taxable. It is primarily the responsibility of employers. The scheme is run by HMRC. Online guidance for both employees and employers is available at www.gov.uk/government/collections/statutory-pay .

You can get SSP as an agency worker if you meet the qualifying conditions. You cannot get SSP if you are unemployed or self-employed, but you may be able to claim employment and support allowance instead (see Chapter 11).

SSP may be topped up by universal credit if your income is low (see Chapters 14 to 19).