Right to view HR policies

[Fraggleface]

Can anyone advise me on my right to view our work hr policies? I've asked hr for them several times in the 18 months since I became a perm employee and have been fobbed off each time.
I know there are around 6 of them, including mat leave policy, sick pay, flexible working etc, but I have never seen them. We have no employee handbook and they're not on the company portal.
Excuses I've been given by HR include:
They're going on the portal and will be available soon ( not happened so far).
They're in new employee handbooks (they're not, I've checked).
I can give you a specific one if you tell me which one you want.
Etc

Is this legal? I don't trust them to keep what I ask for quiet. I specifically want the mat leave one for myself and the flexible working one for one of my direct reports, but I don't want to share this with anyone yet. I've asked for all of them on the basis that my team has a few questions but have just been fobbed off again. Surely we should have a right to view them at any time without questions?

Should I just give up?

[flowery]

I can't see any advantage for them in hiding them away so my immediate reaction is they don't exist. What makes you so sure they do?

[OutToGetYou]

There is no legal right but it sounds to me as if they just don't have any.
Just ask how they will deal with the things you want to know about.

[mouldycheesefan]

Sounds like they don't actually have written policies. It's not compulsory to have them.
Ask for a meeting with the HRD and ask that person to bring the policies and talk you through them.

[Fraggleface]

Thanks both.
The previous HR coordinator gave me a list of the ones they had, but wouldn't send them all to me (only if I asked for a specific one). Same response from HR now. I wanted to check a couple of things before I informed my boss of my pregnancy and some other news from my direct report, but both things are out in the open now anyway. I'm just bemused at their behaviour as obviously as soon as someone asks for eg the mat leave policy, they're alerted to a current or possible future pregnancy. And they have a history of bad HR practice, hence why I wouldn't trust them to keep this info to themselves.

[KP86]

I would ask for each one individually, one day at a time. On Monday I'll have the H&S policy; Tuesday parental leave etc.

[flowery]

Or you could just arrive in the HR department and ask them to just quickly print you off a copy of the maternity policy and don't worry you know they're busy and you're happy to wait..

[Fraggleface]

Thanks all. Appreciate your replies, and funny how you all suspect that they don't actually have any! Think you could be right...

[mouldycheesefan]

They sound hopeless unfortunately. Be assertive! In love your own boss. If things like childcare vouchers or flexible working appeal to you may need to start asking about those things as well now.

[flowery]

Doesn't really make sense otherwise Fraggleface. There's nothing it in for them to hide policies, so it can only be that they haven't written them yet.

[daisychain01]

I'd put in a formal request for information to your employer, in terms of their 'position'

Depending on the size of the company they may not have a formalised "policy" however they must be able to provide you the statement of what you are entitled to - that entitlement must at least reflect employment law in force, and (hopefully) might even exceed employment law if they are a generous employer.

So something like:

Dear HR, please can you let me have the company's position on flexible working and maternity. I'd appreciate this information in writing so that I can understand my rights as an employee of this company.

I'd try not to be confrontational (even if you feel frustrated) - give them the opportunity (formally) before taking matters further. The fact you do it in writing will give them a message that you "mean business".