Zero hours contracts are often regarded as a form of flexible working. We accept that some, but not all, zero hours workers will benefit from the flexibility of such an arrangement. However, for many, it is not an acceptable form of flexible working and other arrangements may be more appropriate for your situation. Other forms of flexible working include (but are not limited to):

Type of arrangement	What is it?
Job sharing	Two people sharing the same job, with hours split between them.
Part time	Working less than full-time hours (usually by working fewer days)
Compressed hours	Working full-time hours but over fewer days (leading to more hours per day)
Flexitime	The employee/worker choose to when to start and finish (subject to agreement with the employer), as long as they work certain "core hours".
Annualised hours	The employee/worker has to work a total number of hours during the year but has a degree of flexibility as to when those hours are worked. Some employers will have "core hours" when the employee has to work.
Staggered hours	The employee/worker has different start, finish and break times from other employees.

Source: Gov.uk