All eligible employees, including same sex couples, adoptive parents and surrogates are entitled to Shared Parental Leave (SPL) and Statutory Shared Parental Pay (ShPP) if their baby is due on or after 5 April 2015 or they adopt a child on or after 5 April 2015. Acas has published a new free guide on Shared Parental Leave to help employers and employees understand how these new changes will affect them and how to manage leave requests fairly. Shared parental leave in touch (SPLIT) days Your employee can work up to 20 days during SPL without bringing it to an end. The Shared Parental Leave regulations provide an opportunity for parents to take advantage of additional flexibility in the way they choose to care for a new arrival to the family. It’s a good idea for the employer and employee to talk as early as possible to agree holiday plans. Acas has published guidance which includes some useful template letters for both employers and employees. 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. It may be helpful even for very small employers to have some information to give to employees about how to take shared parental leave if you want to. It allows both parents to maintain an attachment to the workplace whilst taking on an active role in caring for their new child. Its purpose is to give parents more flexibility in considering how to best care for, and bond with, their child. Recent Comments @SharedLeave. The conciliation service Acas has today published a new guide to shared parental leave (SPL).. Visit Gov.uk. These are known as "Shared Parental Leave in Touch" or … ACAS has just published its guide to the forthcoming changes in parental leave which come in to force from 5th April 2015. Shared Parental Leave comes into force today. Created by Acas, these shared parental leave forms will give your employers all the information they need when giving them notice. There is a two-stage test for eligibility for shared parental leave; This information sheet covers: who can take shared parental leave Acas Head of Guidance, Stewart Gee, said: “Our guide was produced with input from large and small employers, family groups and trade unions and is designed to ensure working parents and employers alike can understand the new shared parental leave arrangements. Shared parental leave (SPL) refers to the right of working parents to share the mother’s statutory entitlement to maternity leave. Shared parental leave allows mothers to end maternity leave/pay early so that one or both parents can take leave in a more flexible way during the baby’s first year. Shared parental leave (SPL) is a new legal right which allows couples to share maternity or adoption leave and pay from 5 April 2015. Tom Neil, Guidance Writer at Acas, talks about new Shared Parental Leave legislation and deciphering what it means for employers and employees. Acas uses cookies to ensure we give you the best experience and to make the site simpler. Workplace experts Acas are advising employers and employees to familiarise themselves with new shared parental leave rights that come into force today. “This could involve returning to work for part of the time and then resuming leave at a later date,” ACAS explained. Visit ACAS . Shared Parental Leave : One Year On; Fatherhood and work: pay bonus, family time deficit; SPL one year on – reasons to be cheerful? There is no requirement for you to have a written shared parental leave policy although most larger employers will have one. Workplace experts Acas are advising employers and employees to familiarise themselves with new shared parental leave rights that come into force today.... New Acas guide on Shared Parental Leave. 9 minute read; Last updated: 31st October 2019 With Shared Parental Leave (SPL), parents can opt to share up to 50 weeks of leave and up to 37 weeks of pay between them in the 12 months after their child is born or, if adopted, placed with the family. Shared parental leave rules will replace this, but concerns have been raised that only a fraction of new fathers had taken the opportunity of longer paternity leave. Shared Parental Leave: a good practice guide for employers and employees 2 About Acas –What we do Acas provides information, advice, training, conciliation and other services for employers and employees to help prevent or resolve workplace problems. Shared parental leave and pay regulations came into force on 1 December 2014 and apply to eligible parents where a baby is due, or a child is placed for adoption, on or after 5 April 2015. 14. Parents will be able to share a 50-week 'pot' of leave, and can decide to be off work at the same time or take turns, or a combination of both. Shared Parental Leave forms (for Adoption) Shared Parental Leave forms (for Maternity) You and your partner may be able to get Shared Parental Leave (SPL) and Statutory Shared Parental Pay (ShPP) if you’re having a baby or adopting a child. Up to 50 weeks of leave can be shared. ACAS – Shared parental leave: A good practice guide for employers and employees – Shared Parental Leave and Pay – Shared parental leave summary process. Parents can take leave at the same time or separately. It aims to help employers and employees navigate their way through the new regulations, which allow couples to share maternity or adoption leave and pay from 5 April 2015. Acas East Midlands Area Director, Kate Nowicki said: “Our guide was produced with input from large and small employers, family groups and trade unions and is designed to ensure working parents and employers alike in Northamptonshire can understand the new shared parental leave arrangements. Acas guide on Shared Parental Leave The Shared Parental Leave system will give parents more choice and freedom over how they share the care of … Visit Gov.uk. It gives advice on how employees can make requests and how employers can ensure they deal with requests fairly. The long awaited Acas guidance ‘Shared Parental Leave: a good practice guide for employers and employees’ Shared Parental Leave: a good practice guide for employers and employees’ was published yesterday. The aim of shared parental leave is to give parents the flexibility to decide who will take time off after a baby is born/adopted, and how much time they will take off. Shared Parental Leave enables eligible parents to choose how to share the care of their child during the first year of birth or adoption. For further information on shared parental leave, see the GOV.UK guidance on shared parental leave or the Acas information, including a model policy. GOV.UK – Shared parental leave and pay. Shared Parental Leave aims to give parents flexibility in how they share leave in the year following the birth (or adoption) of a child. All eligible employees have a statutory right to take Shared Parental Leave. Shared Parental Leave gives parents flexibility in how they share the care of their child in the first year following birth or adoption. Tweets by @sharedleave. ACAS releases guidance on Shared Parental Leave 2 Mins Given that Working Families has found that there seems to be widespread confusion over the taking of Maternity Leave and Shared Parental Leave simultaneously by both parents, such guidance is welcomed with open arms. It is available to birth and adoptive parents. The new regulations will see couples being allowed to share maternity, paternity or adoption leave and pay. Shared Parental Leave was introduced in 2015, and allows you and your partner can share up to 50 weeks of leave – and up to 37 weeks of pay – during the 1st year of your baby’s life or the 1st year after you adopt (on top of the obligatory 2 weeks’ leave, or 4 if you work in a factory). Parents who are expecting a baby from 5th April 2015, or where a child is placed for adoption from this date onwards, may be able to take shared parental leave. Shared Parental Leave: a good practice guide for employers and employees 2 About Acas – What we do Acas provides information, advice, training, conciliation and other services We cannot respond to questions sent through this form. Shared Parental Leave in Touch days (SPLIT) During SPL you can agree to work for the University (or attend training) for up to 20 days without bringing your period of SPL to an end or impacting on your right to claim ShPP for that week. Shared parental leave (SPL) One key difference between maternity, paternity and shared parental leave is that the latter ensures parents have the flexibility to choose how to share their leave. These are called ‘shared parental leave in touch’ (or SPLIT ) days. Recovery of statutory maternity, paternity or adoption payments You can usually reclaim 92% of employees’ SMP, paternity, adoption and shared parental pay. SPLASH (sharedparentalleave.org) BIS: Shared Parental Leave and Pay Technical Guidance Maternity and Paternity Pay Calculator The guidance is published only days after a further blockbuster of seven sets of draft Regulations on this subject. Similarly, the mother can also elect to share her right to statutory maternity pay through what’s known as shared parental pay (ShPP). Forms and guidance are available from Acas and Gov.uk. Shared Parental Leave is designed to give you more flexibility if you wish to share the care of your child in the first year with your partner. Acas has produced a straightforward policy as well as To get Shared Parental Leave (SPL) or Shared Parental Pay (ShPP) you must: follow the rules for starting SPL and ShPP give your employer … If you then decide you want to take SPL, you must notify your employer at least eight weeks before the start of your leave. Find out more about cookies. Recent blog posts. Acas advises employers to develop a clear policy on shared parental leave and says having an early and informal discussion can provide an opportunity for both the employee and employer to talk about their preference regarding when SPL is taken. 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