Proposed Paternity Leave Amends Published

The draft Paternity Leave (Amendment) Regulations 2024, which are proposed to come into force in March 2024, have been laid before Parliament. The Regulations will make changes to the way in which the statutory entitlement to paternity leave is exercised, including the requirements relating to notice and evidence, the period within which paternity leave must be taken, and the requirement that paternity leave be taken in one continuous period.  In summary, the changes are to:

• allow fathers and partners to take their leave as two one-week, non-consecutive blocks

• allow fathers and partners to take their leave at any point in the first year after the birth or adoption of their child (rather than only within the first eight weeks after birth or adoption)

• shorten, in most cases, the notice period required for each period of leave to four weeks, meaning leave can be taken at shorter notice to accommodate the changing needs of the family. (For domestic adoption cases, the notice period for leave will remain within seven days of the adopter having received notice of being matched with a child as the domestic adoption process is inherently less predictable than birth, and children may be placed at short notice following being matched with their adoptive parents)

• to allow a father or partner who has given an initial notice to vary any dates given if they give 28 days’ notice of the variation, enabling them to change planned dates at a later stage to best suit the needs of their families

We'll be discussing this new legislation and other key employment law updates for 2024 at our Spring Summit on Thursday 21st March.  Find out more about the event here.