Parental Leave

Policy and Procedure

Parental Leave was provided for by the Employment Relations Act 1999 and is supplemented by the Maternity and Parental Leave Regulations 1999, as amended from 10 January 2002.

Length of Leave

Parents are able to take up to 13 weeks unpaid parental leave to care for that child, with up to a maximum of 4 weeks' leave in a year. Part-time staff are entitled to leave on a pro rata basis.

Timing of Leave

Leave may be taken up until the child's fifth birthday or until the five years' have elapsed following placement in the case of adoption. Parents of disabled children are able to use their leave of up to 18 weeks to cover for each child up until the child's 18th birthday.

Eligibility

In order to qualify, a member of staff must have been employed by the University for a minimum of twelve months.

Procedure

Requests for leave should be made to the Head of Department/Dean as far in advance as possible and normally not less than 21 days before it is required. The Applicant should complete Section 1 of the Parental Leave form and attach a copy of the appropriate evidence, e.g. child's birth certificate and send it to the Head of Department/Dean.

The Head of Department/Dean has responsibility for completing Section 2 of the Parental Leave form and sending a copy to the Applicant and Human Resources (for record keeping purposes).

Every effort will be made to accommodate the timing of the request for Parental leave, and any refusal must be justifiable, for example, by the business needs of the Department.

The employee will maintain his / her employment rights, including those to continuity of service, while on Parental Leave.