Shared Parental Leave

[Timandtopsy]

Hi - does anyone know if I can end my maternity leave early, then take unpaid leave from work, to allow my husband to take his share of SPL, and in theory allow me to still be off for one year but at home with DH for a few months too?

**depending if 1) we can afford and 2) if employers are ok with this!

Thanks

That unpaid leave, are you thinking of parental leave? (as opposed to paternal leave)

You'd need to check with your employer - there is no leave scheme that gives you the 'right' to do this.
Shared parental will allow you to share up to 50 weeks between you (mum must take first 2 weeks). If you wish to take the full year but have your DH take some shared parental, you could elect to end your leave prior to 52 weeks, allow him the remaining weeks then agree a career break if your employer allows.
Otherwise, no, it's a max of the year between both parents.

It seems that you can only take 4 w of parental leave per year
www.gov.uk/parental-leave/entitlement

thanks for replies, yes, was thinking of asking to finish mat leave early, convert to shared leave, DH take that then I take unpaid (either parental leave or sabbatical). I was hoping from my employers point of view that they would care as either way, I would be out for the year. but maybe easier for me to take mat leave for year, then see if DH could take parental or sabbatical?!

You are only entitled to opt in to Shared Parental Leave (parental leave is something entirely different) if your child was born on or after 5 April 2015. Does this apply to you? If your child was born earlier than 5 April you have no entitment to SPL at all.

If you do qualify for SPL then there are plenty of options within it but you need to find out what your own employer offers (ie. do they mirror any enhanced maternity under their SPL policy) and likewise your partner's employer.

My employer offers the same to parents on SPL as we would to mothers on maternity but there isn't a requirement to do this under the legislation (yet).