Shared Parental Leave

[Rjg25]

Hi,
I'm currently off on maternity leave. I am a teacher and have used the SPL. Scheme to get full pay over school breaks. I’m technically ‘back to work’ during these periods.

I know typically maternity entitlement is 52 weeks, but can I add on the weeks that I’ve been ‘back to work’ onto this? Would it be possible for me to be off work for the year, plus the weeks I’ve been ‘back’?

I hope this makes sense!

Thanks in advance!

My understanding is that no, it is 52 weeks total, so you can choose to return during school holidays but it still counts towards your 52 weeks.

I think if you are doing ShPL you can go back to work, your partner takes over and you could then go back onto MAT leave when your partner comes back off the ShPL if that makes sense? It can still all only total 52 weeks combined between you & your partner though.

Yes you can, I am a teacher who is on maternity at the moment and I am taking 2 blocks of SPL. I was due back to work at the start of December but I am now going back in January due to me technically being back at work for two periods of time, I am just not able to go back later than my child’s 1st birthday.

I used the teachers SPL website to help me with my application and I would 100% recommend them. My LA tried arguing that I had to go back to work on my original December date but the woman at teachers SPL gave me the policy and information needed to send to the LA who then agreed that they were wrong and I was able to go back later.

No. You have given that part to the other parent.

You could apply for parental leave to be taken at the end if your maternity leave, but they can delay it if they chose to. Read up on the regs, think its 4 weeks per year.

You have to use the 52 weeks (minus anything given to the other parent obv but it sounds like that's not applicable here) by child's first birthday.

Other PP who don't know what's going on here - teachers can curtail their ML, go onto ShPL and then take three blocks of leave so they return to work for the holidays and go off again when term starts. It's legal but not what the scheme was designed for.

Thank you so much- so much conflicting information online! The union is saying no- I can’t take more than 52 weeks, but I saw on the SPL site that I can take up to my child’s first birthday!

You can only take 52 weeks, but the weeks that you are technically back at work do not count towards those 52 weeks. It’s confusing!

I’ve attached what was calculated for me, which has been accepted by the LA. As you can see the periods where I have returned to work do not count towards my 52 weeks, I’ve just cropped out the dates on the left.

My understanding is that you and partner can take any combination of leave, as long as it totals no more than 52 weeks and is all taken before your child’s first birthday.