Read again: Shared parental leave – what you need to know

We all know the feeling of panic when a member of staff informs us that they or their partner are pregnant. Good news for them means complex challenges for SBLs! And there is now the added factor of Shared Parental Leave (SPL). School business manager, Rebecca Cunliffe, delves into what you need to know

Along with maternity pay, risk assessments, reasonable adjustments and maternity leave, SPL is rising to the top of the agenda due to the cost implications it carries for schools.

The legislation for this was introduced in 2014, but in recent years schools have seen a steady increase in requests.  As SBLs, we must consider Shared Parental Leave (SPL) as early as possible to ensure we have enough time for good financial planning. It’s also becoming increasingly common for parents to seek independent financial advice in relation to maternity leave, so we need to ensure that we are as prepared as possible to deal with SPL requests fairly and in good time.

So, what do you need to know? Here is a list of the key points;

• Up to 50 weeks leave can be shared between the parents. (The first two weeks leave must be the child bearer).
• Entitlement to up to 29 weeks of SPL (Statutory Shared Parental Pay (ShPP) – £172.48 per week) reduced by any Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) taken.
• Must have 26 weeks continuous service at 15^th week before Expected Week of Childbirth (EWC) and must be in employment until the week before SPL is taken.
• Both parents can be on leave at the same time. This may have larger implications if both parents work for the same establishment. If both parents take 12 weeks SPL together this is the equivalent of 24 weeks SPL.
• An employee must provide 8 weeks’ notice.
• An employee can return to work in between periods of SPL.
• SPL can be taken as one continuous block or in up to three separate blocks.
• Parents need to apply for the leave and the application must include;
• Names of both parents
• Start and end date of SMP/Adoption leave
• Child’s date of birth/date of adoption
• How much SPL is available and how much each parent will take
• Start and end dates of each block
• Declaration from other parent – including name, address, NI number and confirmation of earnings and employment.

Always seek advice from your HR professional as early as possible to ensure that the procedure is being followed correctly and that all costs can be calculated and budgeted.

Other areas for consideration are;

• Main Pay and Upper Pay range teachers and term time only support staff cannot be required to undertake work during the school holidays
• SPLIT days (Shared Parent Leave in Touch) can be applied for

As SBLs and as employers, we need to ensure we understand the rights of our employees, which is hard given the range of areas we are responsible for I know! But keeping up to date will help us to ensure that we are not blindsided by a potential unplanned cost.

The reason this has become a hot topic for School Business Leaders is that employees can take SPL during holidays, meaning that during this time, they are paid but cannot be expected to work.  As this adds an additional layer of complexity for SBLs, the better informed you are, the better prepared you can be to find solutions.

Find out more:

Shared Parental Leave and Pay: employer guide: Overview – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)