Parental Leave – Notification Rules, Annual Leave Accrual, and Return to Work

Parental leave (governed under the Employment Rights Act 1996, the Maternity and Parental Leave etc. Regulations 1999 (MPLR 1999), and the Shared Parental Leave Regulations 2014) is clearly structured under UK employment law. However, it remains a frequent source of administrative and compliance errors. In day-to-day HR practice, five recurring pitfalls regularly create legal risk and operational friction.

Point 1: Notification Requirements and Statutory Schemes

In the UK, parental leave primarily takes two statutory forms: Ordinary Parental Leave (Unpaid Parental Leave) and Shared Parental Leave (SPL). Each has distinct statutory qualifying rules and notice requirements:

For Ordinary Parental Leave, notice must specify the intended start and end dates in writing. Employers may postpone Ordinary Parental Leave (except when taken immediately upon the birth or adoption placement of a child) for up to six months if business operations would be unduly disrupted, but must provide written notice of postponement with reasoned grounds within seven days of the employee's request.

For Shared Parental Leave, notice must strictly adhere to statutory booking requirements. Employees must serve a notice of entitlement and intention to take leave, followed by a formal booking notice giving at least eight weeks' notice before any period of leave begins.

Point 2: Splitting Leave and Booking Blocks

Under Ordinary Parental Leave, leave must generally be taken in blocks of whole weeks (rather than individual days), unless the child is disabled (qualifying for Disability Living Allowance or Personal Independence Payment) or the employer contractually agrees to more flexible arrangements. A maximum of four weeks of Ordinary Parental Leave can be taken per child in any single year, unless a different scheme is agreed in a workforce or collective agreement.

Under Shared Parental Leave (SPL):

• An employee can submit up to three separate booking notices (or variations), enabling leave to be taken in discontinuous blocks.
• If an employee requests a continuous block of leave, the employer cannot refuse it.
• If an employee requests discontinuous blocks in a single notice, the employer has a 14-day consideration period to accept, propose alternative dates, or refuse the discontinuous pattern. If refused, the employee may withdraw the notice or take the total leave as a single continuous block.

Both parents can take statutory leave concurrently or consecutively, provided the statutory shared entitlement (up to 50 weeks of leave and 37 weeks of statutory pay) is not exceeded.

Point 3: Working During Family Leave (SPLIT & KIT Days)

Engaging in work during family leave is strictly governed to protect the employee's statutory leave status:

• Shared Parental Leave in Touch (SPLIT) Days: During Shared Parental Leave, an employee can agree to work up to 20 SPLIT days without bringing their leave or statutory pay to an end (these are in addition to the 10 Keeping in Touch (KIT) days available during statutory maternity/adoption leave).
• Working on a SPLIT or KIT day is strictly voluntary; neither the employer can demand it nor the employee insist upon it.
• Ordinary Parental Leave: Because Ordinary Parental Leave is unpaid and structured in whole-week blocks, there are no statutory KIT/SPLIT provisions. Employees seeking ongoing part-time hours should submit a statutory flexible working request under Section 80F of the Employment Rights Act 1996.

Point 4: Holiday Accrual and Terms During Parental Leave

Key rules regarding leave accrual:

• Employees accumulate their full statutory minimum entitlement (5.6 weeks per year under Regulations 13 and 13A WTR 1998) as well as any enhanced contractual holiday.
• Where an employee cannot take accrued holiday before starting parental leave, they must be permitted to carry it forward into the following leave year.
• Upon return, the employee is entitled to take accrued holiday as paid time off or have any outstanding balance paid in lieu if their employment is subsequently terminated.

Point 5: Protection Against Dismissal, Detriment, and Redundancy

Under the Employment Rights Act 1996 (Sections 47C and 99) and the MPLR 1999:

• It is automatically unfair to dismiss an employee, or select them for redundancy, because they took, sought to take, or made use of any statutory right relating to parental leave or shared parental leave.
• Employees are protected against suffering any unlawful workplace detriment (such as being bypassed for promotion, denied bonuses, or subjected to unfavourable treatment) connected to their parental leave.
• Enhanced Redundancy Protection: Under the Protection from Redundancy (Pregnancy and Family Leave) Act 2023, employees taking maternity, adoption, or shared parental leave benefit from an extended priority right to be offered suitable alternative vacancies in a redundancy scenario, extending for 18 months from the date of the child's birth or adoption placement.

Return to Work

Following parental leave, the employee’s statutory return-to-work rights depend on the duration of absence:

• Isolated leave of 4 weeks or less (e.g. standard Ordinary Parental Leave): The employee has an absolute statutory right to return to the exact same job on terms and conditions no less favourable than if they had not been absent.
• Leave exceeding 4 weeks or combined with other family leave: The employee is entitled to return to the same job, or, if that is not reasonably practicable, to another job that is both suitable and appropriate for them on terms no less favourable.

All contractual continuity of employment is preserved throughout statutory parental leave.

What This Means for HR Administration

• Accurate holiday accrual calculations: Ensure HR and payroll systems continue full statutory and contractual holiday accruals during parental leave without erroneous automated deductions.
• Absence management tracking: Maintain clear tracking of Ordinary Parental Leave quotas (up to 18 weeks per child, 4 weeks per year cap) and SPL booking notices.
• SPLIT and KIT day recording: Log agreed SPLIT/KIT days accurately to ensure proper contractual/statutory remuneration without inadvertently truncating active leave blocks.
• Onboarding and return-to-work workflows: Trigger proactive return-to-work communications well in advance to arrange handover, equipment, IT access restoration, and discuss flexible working requests.

Sources and Statutory References

Statutes and Statutory Provisions

• Employment Rights Act 1996 — Sections 47C, 80F, 99 (Protection against detriment, flexible working, and automatic unfair dismissal)
• Maternity and Parental Leave etc. Regulations 1999 (SI 1999/3312) — Statutory terms, notification, leave periods, and return-to-work provisions
• Shared Parental Leave Regulations 2014 (SI 2014/3050) — Entitlement, notification, and booking rules for Shared Parental Leave
• Working Time Regulations 1998 (SI 1998/1833) — Statutory annual leave accrual (Regulations 13 and 13A)
• Protection from Redundancy (Pregnancy and Family Leave) Act 2023 — Priority redundancy protection for family leave returners

Key Guidance and Codes of Practice

• ACAS Guidance on Parental Leave and Shared Parental Leave (SPL)
• Department for Business and Trade (DBT) Guidance on Family Leave Rights

Status of review: August 2026. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute formal legal advice.