Shared Parental Leave Policy template
A shared parental leave policy is the written statement of how your organisation handles shared parental leave (SPL) — the scheme that lets eligible parents convert part of a maternity or adoption entitlement into leave that either parent can take, in blocks, during the child's first year.
SPL is the most administratively complex family-leave right in UK employment: it involves two parents, sometimes two employers, curtailment notices, and multiple booking notices. Managers who improvise here get the notices wrong and either refuse leave they cannot refuse or grant patterns they never had to. A written policy turns the scheme into a process.
This template gives you a ready-to-edit policy covering eligibility, how SPL is created, booking continuous and discontinuous blocks, shared parental pay, and SPLIT days.
Full text, ready to adapt.
Highlighted fields are placeholders — replace them with your organisation's specifics. A starting point, not legal advice.
Shared Parental Leave Policy
Policy · HR & People
1. Purpose and scope
This policy explains how {{org.name}} handles shared parental leave and shared parental pay. It applies to employees who are the mother or primary adopter of a child, or the child's other parent, and who meet the eligibility conditions on GOV.UK — including cases where the other parent works for a different employer.
2. Policy statement
{{org.name}} supports parents who choose to share leave in the first year. Requests are handled on process, not preference: managers apply the rules below the same way for every employee, and taking SPL will not count against anyone in pay, progression, or redundancy decisions.
3. How shared parental leave works
SPL is created by curtailment: the mother or primary adopter gives binding notice to end their maternity or adoption entitlement early, and the balance becomes available as SPL to share between the parents. Each parent books their share with their own employer. Leave is taken in whole weeks, in one continuous block or in separate (discontinuous) blocks, before the child's first birthday or the anniversary of placement.
The exact amounts of leave and pay available to share depend on how much maternity or adoption entitlement has been used — the calculation rules are on GOV.UK, and [name/role] will confirm the figures for each case.
4. Eligibility and notices
- Both parents must meet eligibility tests covering employment status, service, and earnings — the current tests are on GOV.UK, and we will ask for the statutory declarations that support them.
- The curtailment notice and each booking notice must be given by the statutory notice period on GOV.UK. Use [form/system] so nothing arrives by corridor conversation.
- A booking notice for a single continuous block of SPL that meets the statutory conditions will be accepted.
- A notice requesting discontinuous blocks triggers a discussion period: we can agree the pattern, propose alternatives, or refuse the pattern (in which case the statutory fallback rules on GOV.UK apply). [Name/role] leads that discussion within [number] days.
5. Shared parental pay
Statutory shared parental pay is available for part of the shared leave, at the rate published on GOV.UK, where the eligibility conditions are met. [If {{org.name}} enhances shared parental pay, state the terms here and check they are consistent with your enhanced maternity offer; otherwise state that shared parental pay is at the statutory rate.]
6. During leave: contact and SPLIT days
- Reasonable contact during SPL is agreed before each block starts, as for maternity leave.
- Shared-parental-leave-in-touch (SPLIT) days let an employee work a limited number of days during SPL without ending it — check GOV.UK for the current maximum. SPLIT days are voluntary for both sides and paid at [rate].
- Annual leave continues to accrue during SPL.
7. Returning to work
Return rights after SPL mirror those after maternity and adoption leave: the same job, or after longer combined periods of leave the same job where reasonably practicable, otherwise a suitable alternative on no less favourable terms. Requests to change working patterns are handled under our flexible working policy.
8. Records and review
Curtailment notices, declarations, booking notices, correspondence, and pay records are kept in [system/location]. This policy is reviewed [frequency, e.g. annually] and whenever the statutory scheme changes. Owner: [name/role]. Next review due: [date].
How to adapt this template.
Read the GOV.UK guidance on curtailment and booking notices before editing anything — SPL fails on notices, not on principles.
Decide your position on discontinuous blocks in advance and write it into the eligibility section, so the first request is not decided under time pressure.
Decide whether enhanced shared parental pay matches your enhanced maternity pay, and record the reasoning.
Name one owner for SPL cases — the multi-notice paperwork goes wrong when it is shared between a manager and an inbox.
Run a dummy case through the policy with payroll before publishing: curtailment, two booking notices, one SPLIT day.
Turn this template into trained, proven behaviour
A policy in a drawer proves nothing. In TrainedTeam this template becomes assigned training with knowledge checks, e-signature acknowledgments, version history, and an audit-ready record of who completed what, when.
Shared Parental Leave Policy template FAQs
What is shared parental leave?
Shared parental leave lets eligible parents convert part of a maternity or adoption entitlement into leave that either parent can take, in blocks, during the child's first year. It is created when the mother or primary adopter curtails their maternity or adoption leave, freeing the balance to be shared.
How much shared parental leave and pay is available?
It depends on how much of the maternity or adoption entitlement has already been used — statutory maternity leave is up to 52 weeks with pay for up to 39 weeks, and what remains after curtailment becomes shareable. The calculation rules and current pay rates are on GOV.UK.
Can an employer refuse a shared parental leave request?
A valid notice for a single continuous block must be accepted. A request for discontinuous blocks opens a discussion period in which the employer can agree, propose alternatives, or refuse the pattern — in which case statutory fallback rules apply. What you cannot do is refuse SPL outright to an eligible employee who has given proper notice.
Can both parents be off at the same time?
Yes. Parents can take shared parental leave at the same time or in sequence — the scheme does not require them to alternate. Each parent books their own share with their own employer.
Is a shared parental leave policy a legal requirement?
No — the statutory scheme applies with or without a policy. But SPL is notice-driven and easy to administer wrongly, so a written process protects both sides: employees know how to book, and managers know which requests they must accept and which they can discuss.
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