Parental leave entitlement

[Flossbert]

i have a horrid feeling i know the answer to this one, but could someone in the know please clarify for me?

i was about 7 weeks pregnant when i started my job, so was not entitled to SMP and have only been getting Maternity Allowance. Am now looking to return to work in September, having been on maternity leave since Feb. i understand that parental leave can be taken up until the child is 5 years, but would i be entitled to it as i was only employed for 6 months before i went on ML?

sorry about poor typing - baby in other hand!

Sorry, according to the BusinessLimk website, you have to have one year's service before you are entitled to take parental leave.

If you had six months service by Feb, you have been employed since Aug 09 unless my maths has gone up the creek, meaning you will be entitled to parental leave from August this year.

According to my company parental leave policy which is based on statutory one, "the right to parental leave applies to both mothers and fathers and parents will be able to start taking parental leave when the child is born or placed for adoption or as soon as they have completed one year's service with the employer, whichever is later."

Thanks for the replies - looks like I should have the entitlement when I return to work then. I was just worried that the 6 months I've taken off wouldn't really count as 'service' as it's not like maternity leave in that really they're under no obligation to hold my job for me and they're not paying me anything. But it looks a bit more promising now - thanks peeps.

Parental leave is unpaid, so why don't you just take some more maternity leave? If you've only been off since Feb, it sounds like you have at least four months left (could be closer to six depending on dates).