Parental leave
Download a copy of this Parental leave guide for yourself
This should normally be referred to in your contract of employment or staff handbook.
You must read your employer's procedure where it is available. Below we have outlined your rights and responsibilities and those of your employer.
Parental leave is a form of statutory unpaid leave available to some working parents, in addition to statutory maternity, paternity and adoption leave, for the purpose of caring for a child. The right to take parental leave applies not only to birth and adoptive parents but also to anyone else who has or expects to have, parental responsibility for a child.
Parental leave can last up to 13 weeks per child (so that an employee with two children would be entitled to 26 weeks in total). The times at which such leave is taken and the way in which it is taken can be flexible (unlike maternity, paternity or adoption leave).
Eligibility
If you wish to take parental leave you must satisfy the following eligibility requirements:
- you must be an employee who has been continuously employed for at least one year
- have or expect to have 'parental responsibility' for a child
Parental responsibility
A person who has, or expects to have, responsibility for a child includes not only someone with legal responsibility under the Children Act 1989 but also someone who appears as the child's father pursuant on the birth certificate (regardless of marital status). This will normally include, both birth parents (whether or not they are living with the child), adoptive parents, others such as a guardian or the civil partner of a parent. Step-parents and foster parents are not normally covered unless they have or expect to have parental responsibility by adopting the child.
Length of leave
Each parent is entitled to take up to 13 weeks' (or 18 weeks' if the child is entitled to disability living allowance) parental leave for each child but only in blocks of up to four weeks every leave year. Leave must be taken in blocks of one week unless your child is entitled to disability living allowance in which case single days may be taken.
When can parental leave be taken?
Parental leave must be taken either before:
- the child's 5th birthday
- the child's 18th birthday in the case of a child entitled to a disability living allowance
- the 5th anniversary of the date of placement in the case of an adopted child
Applying to take parental leave
If you wish to take a period of parental leave (either as a free-standing period or after a period of other family leave such as maternity or adoption leave) you should put your request in writing to your employer at least 21 days (but preferably as soon as possible) before you want your parental leave to start.
You should set out the proposed start and end dates of your parental leave in your request.
Your employer is entitled to postpone such a request for leave by up to a maximum of six months, where they consider that the operation of their business would be unduly disrupted.
Following your application, your employer may ask you to provide evidence of:
- your responsibility (or expected responsibility) for the child in question
- your child's date of birth or the date on which the adoption placement began
- your child's entitlement to a disability living allowance where applicable
Protections
You must not be subjected to any detriment by reason of exercising your right to take parental leave.
Returning to work
Where a free-standing period of parental leave is taken for four weeks or less (i.e. not where this is tacked onto the end of maternity, adoption or paternity leave) you will be entitled to return to the same job on the same terms and conditions.
In other cases you will still have the right to return to the same job in which you were employed prior to the parental leave unless that is not reasonably practicable for your employer. In such a case, you will have the right to return to another job which is both suitable and appropriate for you in all the circumstances.
For more information regarding maternity leave, please visit our page.
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All documents should be read and used in accordance with the terms and conditions. This document is for your general information only and is not a detailed statement of the law. It is provided to you free of charge and should not be used as a substitute for specific legal advice. If you require specific legal advice please contact our helpline on 03700 86 86 86.
