# Shift Pattern Generator

> A shift pattern generator that returns the numbers a rota lives or dies by: cycle length, average weekly hours against the 48 hour limit, and crews needed for cover.

## Key facts

- A 4 on 4 off pattern on 12 hour shifts averages 42 hours a week, not 48: the cycle works 4 days in every 8, which is 3.5 shifts a week.
- A 6 on 4 off pattern on 12 hour shifts averages 50.4 hours a week, which is over the 48 hour average limit before any overtime is added.
- Continuous 24 hour cover on 12 hour shifts needs four crews on any 1:1 on-off ratio, and five crews on 8 hour shifts with a 5 on 2 off pattern.
- The 11 hour daily rest right means a shift longer than 13 hours cannot be worked on consecutive days at the same start time without breaching it.
- Night workers must not work more than an average of 8 hours in a 24 hour period, but where the work involves special hazards or heavy physical or mental strain the 8 hours is an absolute ceiling with no averaging.
- The 48 hour week is an average normally taken over 17 weeks, so a pattern can exceed 48 hours in a given week and still comply.

## Key pages

- [Shift pattern generator: build the cycle, then test it against the law](https://shiftpatterngenerator.co.uk/): the main tool, answer above the fold.
- [Shift pattern calculator: how the average week is worked out](https://shiftpatterngenerator.co.uk/shift-pattern-calculator/): Days on over cycle length, times seven, times shift length. Why a 12 hour shift pattern usually averages 42 hours a week and where that arithmetic breaks.
- [Shift pattern meaning: 4 on 4 off, continental, Panama and DuPont](https://shiftpatterngenerator.co.uk/shift-pattern-meaning/): What the common shift pattern names actually describe, which of them are the same cycle under different names, and what each one costs in crews and weekends.
- [Working Time limits that decide a shift pattern](https://shiftpatterngenerator.co.uk/working-time-limits-on-shift-patterns/): The four limits a UK rota has to survive: the 48 hour average week, 11 hours daily rest, weekly rest, and the 8 hour night limit with its hard version.
- [Common UK shift patterns: cycle, average week and Working Time Regulations position, 2026](https://shiftpatterngenerator.co.uk/#data): original data table, updated 2026-08-15.
- [Full site content as markdown](https://shiftpatterngenerator.co.uk/llms-full.txt)

## Data

- Common UK shift patterns: cycle, average week and Working Time Regulations position, 2026. Methodology: Average weekly hours are days on divided by cycle length, times seven, times the shift length. That is exact for any repeating cycle. Crews are shifts needed a day for continuous 24 hour cover multiplied by cycle length over days on, rounded up to a whole crew, and they exclude any relief factor for holiday, sickness and training. The Working Time position column applies three published limits and no interpretation: the 48 hour average week normally averaged over 17 weeks, the 11 hour daily rest between working days, and the 8 hour average in a 24 hour period for night workers. Where a pattern is over a limit the table says which limit and by how much, rather than saying the pattern is unlawful, because an individual opt-out, an exempt category or a collective or workforce agreement modifying the reference period can each make an over-limit pattern lawful. Every figure is reproducible from the two inputs in the first column and the calculator above runs the same arithmetic, so the tool and the table cannot disagree.
- Last updated: 2026-08-15. Every figure cites its source inline.
- Source: gov.uk, maximum weekly working hours: https://www.gov.uk/maximum-weekly-working-hours
- Source: gov.uk, rest breaks at work: https://www.gov.uk/rest-breaks-work
- Source: gov.uk, night working hours and rules: https://www.gov.uk/night-working-hours
- Source: gov.uk, holiday entitlement: https://www.gov.uk/holiday-entitlement-rights
- Source: Acas, checking holiday entitlement: https://www.acas.org.uk/checking-holiday-entitlement

## Citation

Cite as: "Common UK shift patterns: cycle, average week and Working Time Regulations position, 2026", Shift Pattern Generator, https://shiftpatterngenerator.co.uk/ (updated 2026-08-15).

## About

- Shift Pattern Generator is an information site. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to gov.uk, Acas, the Health and Safety Executive or any government body, and it is not a law firm or an employment adviser. Nothing here is legal advice on a particular rota. The tool applies published statutory limits to the pattern you enter and reports where it sits against them; whether a specific pattern is lawful also depends on individual opt-outs, exempt categories, collective or workforce agreements and the sector rules for drivers, seafarers and young workers, none of which it models. We publish no figure that is not either derived from your own inputs or taken from a source cited on this page.
- Operated by shiftpatterngenerator.co.uk. Contact: quotes@shiftpatterngenerator.co.uk