In researching garden leave and payment in lieu of notice it seems that the employee’s employment ends as soon as they are paid in lieu of notice, whereas, if they are put on garden leave and asked not to work during their notice, their employment does not end until the garden leave expires. Therefore my question is what is the difference in practical terms between garden leave and paying an employee in lieu of notice and how is one implemented as opposed to the other, as I always thought they were effectively the same thing?

The aim of garden leave is to keep the employee out of the market place whilst still an employee of the company, to prevent the employee from contacting clients during that period and to enable that employee's successor to establish themselves with customers. It may also mean that any confidential information is returned and/or grows less sensitive during this period.

Payment in lieu of notice means that the employee will stop work and receive, all in one go, a payment of money representing the wages which they would have earned during the proper notice period. This option is attractive to employers when the relationship between employer and employee has deteriorated or if it would be