An Employer's Guide to Shared Parental Leave (SPL) in the UK

Shared Parental Leave (SPL) in the UK allows eligible parents to flexibly share up to 50 weeks of leave and 37 weeks of pay after a birth or adoption, promoting work-life balance and helping reduce gender pay gaps. As of February 2026, Statutory Shared Parental Pay (ShPP) is £187.18 per week (or 90% of average earnings, whichever lower), rising to £194.32 from 6 April 2026, with eligibility based on employment continuity, earnings thresholds (£125 now, £129 from April), and required notices.

Who is entitled to shared parental leave?

Continuity of employment test

Employment and earnings test

Shared parental leave for adoption

Shared parental leave and a surrogacy arrangement

How does shared parental leave work?

How much leave time can they share?

How is shared parental leave created?

What is the work and pay criteria?

How do you work out shared parental pay?

Enhanced shared parental pay

Shared parental leave calculator

End of shared parental leave

Drafting a shared parental leave policy

Need extra support?

Shared parental leave (SPL) can help reduce your organisation's gender pay gap by enabling fathers and partners to take more extended paid leave for childcare, which supports greater gender balance in caregiving responsibilities, reduces career interruptions for women, and promotes more equal progression and retention of female employees. It can also support your staff’s overall well-being. But what is it, and how should you promote and utilise it?

What is shared parental leave?

Shared parental leave allows eligible employees to decide how to share time off after they’ve had a child or adopt one.

Shared parental leave in the UK allows parents to share up to 50 weeks of leave and up to 37 weeks of pay. The leave (and pay) is flexible. Parents can take it all at once, overlap their time off, or split it using up to three separate booking notices each. This allows for continuous blocks or discontinuous periods (with employer agreement needed for more complex discontinuous patterns).

In terms of allocating leave, you, as an employer, can choose to be even more flexible than this if you wish, but that’s at your own discretion.

Who is entitled to shared parental leave?

Shared parental leave gives eligible parents greater flexibility during the first year of their life / newly adopted period. However, to be eligible for shared parental leave, your employees must qualify under certain criteria. Firstly, there must be two parents sharing responsibility of a child.

Applicable partners include:

• The biological father/mother.
• The spouse or civil partner of the birth parents (The same applies for adoptive parents).
• A partner living in an ‘enduring relationship’ with the birth parent.

Another relative cannot be classed as a partner. Eligible parents who take shared parental leave must share care for the child. This applies from the day of birth or adoption. Both parents don't have to be an employee, but one does, and they must also be legally classed as an employee and pass two tests:

1. The Continuity of Employment Test.
2. The Employment and Earnings Test.

Continuity of employment test

To be classed as eligible parents for SPL, the employee must have been employed with you for a certain period. This period is at least 26 weeks by the end of the ‘qualifying week’.

Count back 15 weeks from the baby’s week of arrival to find the qualifying week. Remember, ‘continuous employment’ means working for the same employer without a break. It’s important to note that absence due to sickness or incapacity won’t break the continuity of employment test. 

Also, SPL does not carry over if eligible parents move to a different employer.

Employment and earnings test

Eligible parents must have, during the 66 weeks before their baby is due:

• Been in employment or self-employment for at least 26 weeks (these don't need to be consecutive) for their employer. 
• Earned a minimum of £30 a week on average in 13 of the 66 weeks.

One parent must be eligible for maternity / adoption leave and make a notice to curtail this. This person must meet the employment test. The other person must meet the employment and earnings test.

Shared parental leave for adoption

For the purposes of adoption leave, one parent must decide to be the main adopter. This is the person who can take adoption leave. The employee doesn’t need to have any length of service, as this is now day one right.

After the first two weeks of adoption leave, the couple can share the rest of the leave entitlement. To do this they would need to give notice in advance and meet the required tests.

As highlighted above, this situation classes you as a partner in the same way it does a birth child. In short, they must be:

• Married to the main adopter.
• The civil partner of the main adopter.
• Live with the main adopter and the child in an ‘enduring family relationship’.

For more information, see our adoption leave and pay guide.

Shared parental leave and a surrogacy arrangement

If your employee is having a child via a surrogate, they also have the right to adoption leave. This means they don’t need the length of service to qualify. This right applies if they have a parental order with their partner or intend to apply for one. If they are intending to apply or have applied, they must expect it to be granted.

To qualify for shared parental leave, they must meet the eligibility criteria outlined above.

If your employee is a surrogate, they have the right to maternity leave. However, if they are a surrogate for another couple, they cannot take shared parental leave. What a surrogate does after the child is born doesn’t affect their right to maternity leave.

Need help calculating maternity pay? Use our free maternity pay calculator!

How does shared parental leave work?

Shared parental leave is flexible and puts most of the choice in the hands of employees. Eligible staff members share up to 50 weeks of leave, but there are some rules.

How much leave time can they share?

The first two weeks of maternity leave are compulsory; however, two weeks of adoption leave must be taken before SHPL can be taken. The rest of the 50 weeks can be split however the couple chooses. The couple is also entitled to up to 37 weeks of shared parental pay (ShPP).

Parents can choose to take the leave separately or together. For example, they could both take 25 weeks of leave each and return to the office following this period. Or one partner could take 5 weeks off whilst the other stays at work, then when the 5-week period is over, the other parent takes the remaining 45 weeks when the partner returns to work.

They can also split the time, or stagger leave and pay.

The only stipulation is that the leave must be taken within the first year after the birth of the child, or the first year after adoption.

How is shared parental leave created?

Shared parental leave actually begins when maternity leave ends. The first two weeks of maternity leave are compulsory. The mother can choose to end her maternity leave there and begin shared parental leave. However, she can choose to end her maternity leave later, for example, six weeks, and move to shared parental leave.

Taking more maternity leave does not create more shared parental leave. If maternity leave ends at 2 weeks, then the couple is entitled to 50 weeks of SPL. If it ends at 6 weeks, then the couple is entitled to 46 weeks.

What is the work and pay criteria?

If both parents are working, and they reach 26 weeks of employment by the end of the 15th week before the due date, then they are eligible for Shared Parental Pay.

They must also:

• Remain with you whilst they take SPL.
• Be ‘employees’ and not ‘workers’.
• £125 per week (over the relevant period, typically 8 weeks before the qualifying week). From April 2026, this rises to £129.

Finally, to be truly eligible they must provide you with notice at least 8 weeks prior to the leave date.

How do you work out shared parental pay?

It’s quite simple. Statutory Shared Parental Pay is £187.18 or 90% of the employee’s average weekly earnings (whichever is lower). From 6 April 2026, this rises to £194.32.

If the mother decides to stop their maternity pay or allowance before their full entitlement is up, they may claim SSPP for the remaining weeks. The maximum payment period is 37 weeks.

Enhanced shared parental pay

A great way to encourage the usage of shared parental leave is to offer enhanced shared parental pay (EShPP). The minimum you must pay is the same as statutory maternity pay, which is 90% of the employee’s average weekly earnings for the first 6 weeks and then the statutory rate following that.

If you’re unsure how much to pay your employees, you could offer full pay instead of 90% of pay.

Whatever you decide, you should ensure the amount you’ll pay is written in employee contracts and/or handbooks.

Shared parental leave calculator

If you’re still uncertain how much you need to pay your employees for SMP, Paternity pay adoption pay, or ShPP, then you can use the Maternity, Adoption, & Paternity Calculator.

Prior to using this, you should have the following information at hand:

• The baby’s due date.
• Date of birth (paternity).
• Employee's salary details.
• Dates of adoption, (match date and date of placement).

End of shared parental leave

Like maternity or paternity leave, there is a definitive end. The maximum entitlement a couple receives is 50 weeks. At this point, both employees should return to work.

However, like Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP), the maximum entitlement payment period is 37 weeks, and so many staff will want to end their shared parental leave at that point.

Once the employee has submitted a period of leave notice, they can vary or cancel their shared parental leave dates. They do this by providing you with a variation notice with at least eight weeks' written notice.

                                                                 

Drafting a shared parental leave policy

Maternity policies do not automatically mean you have shared parental leave (SPL) policy.

For example, you may offer enhanced maternity pay, but does this also apply to parents taking ShPL? You may have a stance on staff taking maternity allowance early; could a parent taking SPL do the same?

Another element to consider is the fact that there have been cases where employees taking shared parental leave face discrimination.

Your policy should ensure that anyone taking ShPL does not face discrimination, harassment, or bullying, and if they do, they have the correct procedures in place to protect them. You can always use your policies on maternity leave and statutory maternity pay as a basis to begin constructing your shared parental leave policy.

Some vital elements to include in your ShPL policy are:

• A breakdown of what shared parental leave is.
• Entitlement to leave.
• Employee notice.
• Shared parental pay entitlement.
• Terms and conditions.
• Keeping in touch during leave.
• Return to work.
• Special circumstances.

Need extra support?

Parental leave of any kind is a sensitive topic. Avoiding heightened emotions during this period is crucial to having constructive. empathetic conversations.

Unfortunately, it can be difficult to avoid having uncomfortable conversations. Fortunately, that’s where Croner comes in!

If you’re facing a tricky leave-related situation, you might think you’re alone in facing it, but Croner has faced every conceivable scenario before, helping businesses just like yours succeed!

Our advisors have a directory of shared parental leave example scenarios on hand that cover all issues, to ensure you are in good hands. Get in touch with Croner on 01455 858 132.