Shared parental leave
Advice
There are four main types of Shared Parental Leave:
- Shared Parental Leave (SPL) – Birth Parents
- Shared Parental Leave (SPL) – Adoptive Parents
- Statutory Shared Parental Pay (ShPP) – Birth Parents; and
- Statutory Shared Parental Leave (ShPL) – Adoptive Parents
In essence, the payments cover parents who will share the responsibility of the child and meet the work and pay criteria. There are slightly different rules if you are adopting. The requirements for both elements are subject to constant governmental change. You can figure out directions through the governmental page on parental leave. The rules are complicated. As such, we suggest you discuss the current eligibility and criteria with your HR department.
How do I claim shared parental leave/pay?
To claim shared parental leave and pay, the applicant must either end their leave and return to work or hand out a binding notice to their employer specifying their leave start and end dates. This notice is to be given to the employer no less than eight weeks before the applicant's preferred start date. The Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) provides free template forms directed towards eligible parents of all routes (i.e., adoption, biological or surrogacy).
How we can help
Lestons can intervene if you feel your employer has not given you your allowed leave and pay. To gain our assistance you need to open a case, this is done by taking advantage of our free consultation service, activated by the link at the top of the page, should you wish to start a case the caseworker will send you the suitable payment link. Please note your caseworker can only give generic advice, their role is to prepare your details for handling by our legal team and to act as your point of contact, they will also issue you with your Password and PIN, these will be needed to log onto your client dashboard. From your dashboard you will be able to manage and view every aspect of your case, upload documents, images, files etc.