Paternity/Maternity Support Leave

Policy and Procedure

Paternity/Maternity Support Leave was approved by the University Court on 21 May 1996. The current rights to Paternity Leave are covered in the Employment Act 2002. University Paternity/Maternity Support Leave is available to those who become fathers or in the absence of a father, a partner or nominated support carer.

Length of Leave

Two weeks paid leave. This also applies to multiple births. This does not need to be taken all at the one time but can be taken on separate occasions as long as the total period of leave does not exceed 2 weeks.

Timing of Leave

The leave may be taken within a period from six months before the birth to six months after.

Eligibility

In order to qualify, a member of staff must have been employed by the University for 26 weeks by the fifteenth week before the expected date of the birth. No distinction will be drawn between live and still births. Employees who adopt a child are also eligible for this leave, but not for both. If eligible, an employee may apply for the benefits of maternity leave instead of paternity/maternity support leave or parental leave in addition to paternity/maternity support leave.

Procedure

Requests for leave should be made to the Head of Department/Dean as far in advance as possible and normally not less than ten working days before it is required. The expected week of childbirth can be used to apply for leave as far in advance as possible although, given the unpredictable nature of childbirth, it is reasonable to expect that the actual days of taking leave are likely to vary.

The Applicant should complete Section 1 of the Paternity Leave Form and attach a copy of the appropriate evidence, e.g. Maternity Certificate (Form MAT B1)/Ante-Natal appointment and send it to the Head of Department/Dean.

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

Every effort should be made to accommodate the timing of the request. Where an employee does not have sufficient continuous service to be eligible for paternity/maternity support leave annual leave should be used.

Members of staff who wish to take more than 2 weeks of Paternity/Maternity Support Leave should arrange to make use of their annual leave entitlement in the normal way through their Head of Department/Dean although there is not a requirement that this must be granted.