COMPLIANCE
Shared parental leave and pay: understanding the detail
Laura Kemp ACIPP talks us through some of the intricacies of shared parental leave (SPL) and shared parental pay (ShPP)
S PL and ShPP require employers. They were introduced on 1 December 2014, for parents with children born or adopted on or after 5 April 2015. SPL provides flexible options for taking time off to care for newborns or adopted children, encouraging both parents to bond, and promoting gender equality in parental responsibilities. Eligible parents can share up to 50 weeks considerable administration for both employees and of SPL and 37 weeks of ShPP within the first year after the child’s arrival. Leave can be taken in up to three separate blocks and shared between parents if both qualify. To be eligible for SPL, at least one parent must take less than 52 weeks of maternity or adoption leave and less than 39 weeks of corresponding pay. For instance, if a mother takes 22 weeks of maternity leave and statutory maternity pay (SMP), she and her partner can share 30 weeks of SPL and 17 weeks of ShPP. The current statutory payment is £187.18 per week (effective 6 April 2025) or 90% of an employee’s average weekly earnings, whichever is lower.
the eligibility for adopters or parents using a surrogate table).
to their employer to start SPL or ShPP. Templates are available on the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service website, here: https://ow.ly/QTcQ50VIXzK. After receiving the notice, the employer can request: l a copy of the child’s birth certificate l a declaration of the place and date of birth if the birth hasn’t yet been registered l the name and address of the employee’s partner’s employer, or a declaration if the partner has no employer. For adoption or fostering, the employer may ask for: l the name and address of the adoption agency or local authority l the date the employee was matched with the child l the date the child will start living with the employee l the name and address of the partner’s employer, or a declaration if there isn’t one. The employer has 14 days to request this information, and the employee has an additional 14 days to provide it. Blocks of leave An employee taking SPL can split their leave into up to three blocks, although employers may permit more. Both parents can take SPL at the same time or at different times. Employees must give at least eight weeks’ notice before starting leave, though this can be shorter if the child is born more than eight weeks early. With the employer’s agreement, employees can also break a block of leave into shorter periods of at least one week. For example, they could work every other week during a 12-week block, using six weeks of SPL. SPL in touch (SPLIT) days Employees can work up to 20 SPLIT days (shared parental leave in touch days) during SPL without ending their leave. These are in addition to the ten
Starting SPL For SPL to start, the mother (or person on adoption leave) must either: l return to work, ending any maternity or adoption leave, or l provide at least eight weeks’ of binding notice to the employer about the end date of their leave (this date usually cannot be changed). SPL can begin for the partner while the other parent is still on leave, given that notice has been provided. The mother must take at least two weeks of maternity leave after giving birth (four weeks in a factory setting), and the person claiming adoption pay must also take a minimum of two weeks of adoption leave. Starting ShPP The mother (or person receiving adoption pay) must give their employer at least eight weeks’ notice of when they plan to end maternity or adoption pay. If they receive maternity allowance, they should notify Jobcentre Plus instead. Once maternity pay, maternity allowance or adoption pay ends, it cannot be restarted. However, the mother or adopter may change their decision to end leave early if both: l the planned end date hasn’t passed l they haven’t returned to work. One of the following must also apply: l they find out during the notice period that neither partner is eligible for SPL or ShPP l the mother or adopter’s partner has died l the mother notifies the employer less than six weeks after the birth (and gave prior notice). ShPP can start for the partner while the other is still on maternity or adoption leave if notice to end it has been given.
Eligibility criteria To qualify for SPL and ShPP, both birth parents must:
l share responsibility for the child at birth l meet specific work and pay criteria, which vary based on the parent applying (see the eligibility for birth parents table). There’s no eligibility if the parents started sharing responsibility for the child after it was born. For adoptive parents or those using a surrogate, both must share responsibility from: l the child’s due date or birth date if using a surrogate l the date the child is placed with them if adopting. Both parents must also meet the relevant work and earnings criteria (see
What the employee must do An employee must give written notice
| Professional in Payroll, Pensions and Reward | May 2025 | Issue 110 24
Made with FlippingBook - Online magazine maker