Role Holder policies

1 Purpose

1.1 Bracebridge Heath Parish Council recognises that parents have joint responsibility for the care and upbringing of their children and aims to support employees where possible and appropriate in balancing the needs of home and work life.

1.2 Bracebridge Heath Parish Council complies with the Shared Parental Leave Regulations 2014, which provides a statutory right for an employee to take shared parental leave (ShPL) in connection with the birth of a child, or placement of an adopted child born on or after 5th April 2015.

1.3 Bracebridge Heath Parish Council provides maternity, paternity, adoption and other family related leave arrangements to support employees.

1.4 This policy and procedure aims to outline

• the procedures to be followed for taking shared parental leave;
• the expectations, benefits and entitlements to ensure that employees have a clearunderstanding of and comply with the relevant procedures.

2 Scope

2.1 This policy applies to all employees provided they meet the service requirements for eligibility.

3 Related legislation, policies and guidance

3.1 This policy should be read in conjunction with the following related legislation, policies and guidance:

• Maternity and parental leave etc regulations 1999 (amended 2002, 2014 and 2024)

Bracebridge Heath Parish Council internal documents:

• Maternity leave policy
• Adoption leave policy
• Shared parental leave policy

4 Responsibilities and review

4.1 The Personnel committee is responsible for the review of this policy.

4.2 The policy will be reviewed every three years or earlier in response to changes in relevant legislation.

5 Shared parental leave principles

5.1 Shared parental leave (ShPL) is available to all members of staff and allows a mother / primary adopter and her partner to share the responsibility of working and caring for a child provided that the mother/primary adopter returns to work prior to using all of her entitlement to maternity / adoption leave and / or statutory pay.

5.2 Shared parental leave is regarded as a period of unpaid leave.

6 Eligibility

6.1 To qualify for shared parental leave you must:

• be the child’s mother or primary adopter;
• be the biological father of the child; or
• be the mothers husband, or partner (including same sex relationships) or civil partner, or be the husband or partner (including same sex relationships) of the primary adopter;
• have 26 weeks continuous service with Bracebridge Heath Parish Council.

7 Entitlement

7.1 Eligible parents will be able to share a maximum of 50 weeks leave and 39 weeks statutory pay, for the purpose of caring for a child within the first year of the child’s life or in the year after the child is placed for adoption.

7.2 Shared parental leave cannot be taken until after the birth/placing of the child and only applies to babies born or children placed on or after 5th April 2015.

7.3 Partners do not have to work for Bracebridge Heath Parish Council, but they must satisfy minimum employment and earnings criteria.

8 Taking Periods of Leave

8.1 Shared Parental Leave (ShPL) must be taken in complete weeks, it can be taken:

• as one continuous block;
• in multiples of complete weeks.

8.2 The minimum ShPL that can be taken is one week.

8.3 Provided that both parents qualify for ShPL you can choose to take leave at the same time as your partner or you can take your leave separately.

8.4 You may take one or more periods of shared parental leave per pregnancy or adoption.

9 Conditions of Employment

9.1 During a period of shared parental leave individuals will be entitled to the same terms and conditions that would have applied had they not taken the leave, with the exception of remuneration.

9.2 All shared parental leave will be:

• pensionable;
• reckonable for incremental pay; and
• included in any probationary period.

10 Right to Return

10.1 You have the right to return to the same job if you have been on shared parental leave plus any other type of leave for 26 weeks or less.

10.2 If you have been on leave for more than 26 weeks you have the right to return to the same job unless this is not reasonably practicable. If due to organisational change your role no longer exists you would be managed in accordance with the organisational change policy.

11 Keeping in Touch

11.1 Both parents who are eligible for shared parental leave may take up to a maximum of 20 keeping in touch (KIT) days between them. This is in addition to the 10 KIT days available during a period of maternity leave.

11.2 KIT days must be approved by the Parish Clerk.

11.3 Taking KIT days, which are days when you attend work, will not end your entitlement to shared parental leave or statutory pay. On a KIT day you will be paid for the number of hours that you work.

12 Leave & Curtailment Notice

12.1 Anyone eligible and intending to take shared parental leave must submit a maternity / adoption leave curtailment notice, giving at least 8 weeks’ notice stating that they wish to end their maternity or adoption leave early.

12.2 Once you have ended your maternity/adoption leave and have returned to work you will only be entitled to statutory pay during periods of shared parental leave and at that point you cannot revert back onto maternity leave.

12.3 Employees are encouraged to and should give careful consideration to the financial implications of ending your maternity / adoption leave early while still in receipt of occupational maternity / adoption pay.

13 Notice of Entitlement

13.1 Before taking leave, a notice of entitlement and intention to take shared parental leave, must be submitted. This may be submitted at the same time as the maternity / adoption curtailment notice or at a later date but it cannot be later than 8 weeks before the date of the first period of shared parental leave.

13.2 Requests for a single block of leave or more must be agreed by the Parish Council.

13.3 If a request is for more than a single block the Parish Council may:

• agree the request;
• decline the request due to organisational need;
• propose alternative dates.

13.4 Up to three separate requests for periods of shared parental leave and three withdrawal notices may be submitted. Any periods of leave that have been declined to not count towards these totals.

14 Declaration

14.1 The Shared Parental Leave Forms found in appendix 1 must be completed and submitted to the employee’s line manager. These forms act as a declaration that the individual:

• meets all the criteria to be eligible for shared paternity leave and pay;
• has met the notification requirements as detailed above.

14.2 False declarations may subject the employee to the Parish Council’s disciplinary procedure.

15 Version control and amendment history