Acas publishes suite of practical tools on shared parental leave

19 March 2015

Shared parental leave (SPL) is a new legal right which allows couples to share maternity or adoption leave and pay from 5 April 2015. Working mothers and partners who are finding out now that they are expecting a child will be among the first parents eligible to take advantage of these new rights.

To celebrate Mother's Day, Acas has produced a set of top tips for working mums and new mums-to-be:

  • Check to make sure that you are eligible for shared parental leave. This online calculator can help GOV.UK - Calculate your leave and pay when you have a child.
  • Talk to your partner before speaking to your employer. There are many different combinations that are possible with SPL and you will need to make sure they fit around your life and work for you as a couple. You may want to double up in the early days for extra support, tag-team halfway through or do several swaps - the choice is yours.
  • You have to give your employer at least eight weeks notice of your intention to take shared parental leave so have a conversation with your employer as early as you can. The sooner you do, the easier it will be to make plans for your time away from work.
  • Read Acas' free guidance to help you understand these changes and download the template forms and letters that will help you put in a request - Shared parental leave and pay.

According to estimates from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), there are expected to be around 285,000 working couples who will be eligible to share their leave from April.

The forms and template letters published today cover surrogate parents, adopters and mothers who are entitled to maternity or adoption leave. These tools and Acas' full guidance Shared Parental Leave: A good practice guide for employers and employees are available at Shared parental leave and pay.

 

CIPP comment

The CIPP run a half day course filled with detailed information regarding SPL. Visit the CIPP website for dates and locations.

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