Legal expenses insurer DAS says that, although flexible working rights have now been extended to an additional 2.7 million people, employers can turn down requests if there is a valid business reason for doing so.

A spokesman said:

"The laws clearly favour employees, yet there is often confusion between actual rights and the requirement for employers to reasonably consider requests.

"By following the correct procedures, employers may still turn down such requests if they can show an appropriate business reason."

These include the burden of additional costs, a detrimental effect on the ability to meet customer demand and a detrimental impact on quality.