2.9 Shared Parental Leave and Pay

2.9 Shared Parental Leave and Pay
2.9.1 General
i
ii
iii
iv
Shared Parental Leave is a form of Leave available to working parents following
the birth of a child. It applies in respect of children who are expected to be
born on or after 5 April 2015.
All employees are able to benefit from Shared Parental Leave irrespective of
service.
This Leave is currently for a period of 52 weeks, part of which (39 weeks) may
be paid subject to the employee meeting certain qualification requirements.
Full details of the current qualifying periods and payment rates will be in line
with current legislation. The details of this entitlement will be included in
correspondence employees will receive on notifying the Company that they
request Shared Parental Leave.
Rules relating to Shared Parental Leave outside of the scope of this policy will
be in line with current legislation.
2.9.2 Opting in to Shared
Parental Leave and Pay
i
ii
iii
The total amount of Shared Parental Leave available is 52 weeks, less the
weeks spent by the child's mother on maternity leave
The mother cannot start Shared Parental Leave until after the compulsory
Maternity Leave period, which lasts until two weeks after birth.
The child's father or the mother's partner and should consider using the two
weeks' Paternity Leave before taking Shared Parental Leave. Once Shared
Parental Leave starts the employee will lose any untaken Paternity Leave
entitlement. Shared Parental Leave entitlement is additional to Paternity Leave
entitlement.
2.9.3 Ending Maternity
Leave
i
Not less than eight weeks before the date the employee intends the
Shared

Parental Leave to start, they must give a written opt-in notice giving:
• their name and the name of the other parent;
• if they are the child's mother, the start and end dates of the maternity
leave;
• if they are the child's father or the mother's partner, the start and end
dates of the mother's maternity leave;
• the total Shared Parental Leave available, which is 52 weeks minus the
number of weeks' maternity leave taken or to be taken;
• how much of that will be allocated to the employee and how much to
the other parent. (The employee can change the allocation by giving a
further written notice, and providing they have not used their full
allocation);
• if they are claiming Statutory Shared Parental Pay, the total Statutory
Shared Parental Pay available, which is 39 weeks minus the number of
weeks of the Statutory Maternity Pay period taken or to be taken;
• how much of that will be allocated to the employee and how much to
the other parent. (The employee can change the allocation by giving a
further written notice, and providing they have not used their full
allocation);
• an indication of the pattern of leave that the employee is thinking of
taking, including suggested start and end dates for each period of
Leave. This indication will not be binding at this stage, but should give
as much information as the employee can about their future
intentions; and
• declarations by the employee and the other parent that they meet the
statutory conditions for entitlement to Shared Parental Leave and
Statutory Shared Parental Pay .
ii
iii
If the employee is the child's mother and is still on Maternity Leave, they must
give at least eight weeks' written notice to end their Maternity Leave (a
curtailment notice) before they can take Shared Parental Leave. The notice
must state the date Maternity Leave will end. The employee can give the
notice before or after they give birth, but they cannot end the Maternity Leave
until at least two weeks after birth.
Employees must also give, at the same time as the curtailment notice, a notice

to opt into the Shared Parental Leave Scheme or a written declaration that the
child's father or employees partner has given his or her employer an opt-in
notice and that they have given the necessary declarations in that notice.
iv The other parent may be eligible to take Shared Parental Leave from their
employer before the employee’s Maternity Leave ends, provided they have
given the curtailment notice.
v The curtailment notice is usually binding and cannot be revoked. Employees
can only revoke a curtailment notice if maternity leave has not yet ended and
one of the following applies:-
• the employee realises that neither they nor the other parent are in fact
eligible for Shared parental Leave or Statutory Shared Parental Pay,
they can revoke the curtailment notice in writing up to eight weeks
after it was given;
• if the employee gave the curtailment notice before giving birth, they
can revoke it in writing up to eight weeks after it was given, or up to six
weeks after birth, whichever is later; or
• if the other parent has died.
vi Once an employee has revoked a curtailment notice they cannot submit a
second curtailment notice, unless the revocation was given in the
circumstances in point i above.
If the employee is the child's father or the mother's partner, they will only be
able to take Shared parental Leave once the mother has either:-
• returned to work or;
• given her employer a curtailment notice to end her maternity leave.
2.9.4 Evidence of
Entitlement
i
Employees provide on request:-
• A copy of the birth certificate (or if the employee has not yet obtained
a birth certificate, a signed declaration of the child's date and place of
birth) and;
• The name and address of the other parent's employer (or a declaration
that they have no employer).

2.9.5 Notification of
Shared Parental Leave
Dates
• Having opted into the Shared Parental Leave system employees will need to
give a period of Leave notice identifying the start and end dates of the Leave.
This can be given at the same time as the opt-in notice, or it can be given later,
as long as it is given at least eight weeks before the start of the Leave.
Employees must also state in their period of Leave notice the dates on which
they intend to claim Shared Parental Pay, if applicable.
• If a period of Leave notice gives dates for a single continuous block of Shared
Parental Leave the employee will be entitled to take the Leave set out in the
notice.
• Employees can give up to three period of Leave notices. This may enable them
to take up to three separate blocks of Shared Parental Leave.
2.9.6 Requesting Split
Shared Parental Leave
i In general, a period of Leave notice should set out a single continuous block of
Leave. CTL Seal may, in some cases, be willing to consider a period of Leave
notice where the Shared Parental Leave is split into shorter periods (of at least
a week) with periods of work in between. This should be discussed with the
employees Manager in advance of submitting any formal period of Leave
notices. This will give more time to consider the request and hopefully agree a
pattern of Leave from the start.
ii Employees must submit a period of Leave notice setting out the requested
pattern of Leave at least eight weeks before the requested start date. If the
Company are unable to agree to the request straight away, there will be a twoweek
discussion period. At the end of that period, the Company will confirm
any agreed arrangements in writing. If both parties have not reached an
agreement, the employee will be entitled to take the full amount of requested
Shared Parental Leave as one continuous block, starting on the start date given
in the notice (for example, if the employee requested three separate periods
of four weeks each, they will be entitled to one 12-week period of leave).
iii Alternatively, the employee may:
• choose a new start date (which must be at least eight weeks after the
original period of leave notice was given), and tell CTL Seal within five
days of the end of the two-week discussion period or;
• withdraw the period of leave notice within two days of the end of the

two-week discussion period (in which case it will not be counted and
they may submit a new one if they choose).
2.9.7 Changing the Dates
or Cancelling Shared
Parental Leave
i
ii
iii
iv
Employees can cancel a period of leave by notifying the Company in writing at
least eight weeks before the start date in the period of leave notice.
Employees can change the dates for a period of leave by giving the Company at
least eight weeks' notice before the original start date and the new start date.
Employees do not need to give eight weeks' notice if they are changing the
dates of their Shared Parental Leave because their child has been born earlier
than expected, where they wanted to start their Shared Parental Leave a
certain length of time (but not more than eight weeks) after birth. In such
cases employees should notify CTL Seal in writing of the change as soon as they
can.
A notice to cancel or change a period of leave will count as one of the three
period of leave notices, unless:-
• the variation is a result of the child being born earlier or later than
expected;
• the variation is at the Company’s request or;
• the Company agrees otherwise.
2.9.8 Shared Parental
Pay
i
Shared Parental Pay of up to 39 weeks (less any weeks of Maternity Pay or
Adoption Pay claimed by the employee or the other parent) may be available
provided they meet the qualification criteria. Details of this will be outlined in
the correspondence issued to the employee.
2.9.9 Other Terms
i
An employee’s terms and conditions of employment remain in force during
Shared Parental Leave, except for the terms relating to pay.

ii Annual leave entitlement will continue to accrue. Where Shared Parental Leave
will continue into the next holiday year, any holiday entitlement that cannot
reasonably be taken before starting the leave can be carried over and must be
taken immediately before returning to work unless the Managing Director
agrees otherwise.
2.9.10 Keeping in Touch
i CTL Seal may make reasonable contact with an employee from time to time
during Shared Parental Leave although this will be kept to a minimum. This
may include contacting the employee to discuss arrangements for the return
to work.
ii Employees may ask or be asked to work (including attending training) on
"keeping in touch" days during their Shared Parental Leave. This is in addition
to any “keeping in touch” days that may have taken during Maternity Leave.
“Keeping in touch” days are not compulsory and must be discussed and agreed
with the employees Manager.
iii Employees will be paid at normal basic rate of pay for time spent working on a
“keeping in touch” day and this will be inclusive of any Shared Parental Pay
entitlement.
2.9.11 Returning to
Work
i If an employee wants to end a period of Shared Parental Leave early, they
must give eight weeks' prior notice in writing of the return date.
ii If an employee wants to extend the Shared Parental Leave they must submit a
new period of leave notice at least eight weeks before the date that they were
due to return to work, assuming they still have Shared Parental Leave
entitlement remaining and have not already submitted three period of leave
notices. If they are unable to request more Shared Parental Leave they may be
able to request annual leave or Parental Leave, which will be subject to the
needs of the Company.
iii Generally, employees are entitled to return to work in the position they held
before starting Shared Parental Leave, and on the same terms of employment.