The key elements of Shared Parental Leave


Shared Parental Leave (SPL) can:


• start on any day of the week;


• only be taken in complete weeks (e.g. if it starts on a Tuesday it will finish on the following Monday);


• be taken using three separate notices to book leave (although an employer can choose to accept more). This means that normally, leave can be divided into a maximum of three separate chunks of time. The scheme describes leave as either “continuous” or “discontinuous” (i.e. split up in chunks of time);


• be taken by the partner while the mother is still on statutory maternity or adoption leave if the mother decides to cut short her leave entitlement to allocate some of it to her partner (see below). In other words, both parents can be off work together;


• SPL can be for a maximum of 50 weeks in total (i.e. the length of the maternity or adoption leave period, less the compulsory two weeks’ leave).