Shared Parental Leave fails to deliver for dads

In response to the notion that Dads and partners are able to access the Shared Parental Leave scheme should they wish to spend longer with their new children Joeli adds, “Shared Parental Leave has failed on almost every measure set by the Government. In addition, the scheme is fundamentally flawed. It is not shared parental leave at all, it is shar... See more

“Looking only at parents who are potentially eligible for SPL – i.e. both are working – our study revealed that, on average, there had been no significant increase in the number of new fathers taking up leave.”

“In a sense, that is not surprising, as a high proportion would have started taking some form of paternity leave when it was first introduce... See more

“First and foremost, the financial terms are not that attractive. The low rate for Statutory Shared Parental Pay (ShPP) means shared leave often represents a significant reduction in earnings and, for many people, makes it unaffordable. This is exacerbated if the father is the family’s primary earner, or earns considerably more than the mother.”

“Th... See more

The government has committed to reviewing parental leave during its first year in office.

It says it wants statutory paternity leave to be a day-one right for all employees. Currently, it applies to dads who have been employed for 26 weeks or more.

But even with these proposed changes, campaigners say the UK's parental leave system is one of the wors... See more

Joeli Brearley CEO and Founder of Pregnant Then Screwed comments, “Paternity leave isn’t a break from work, it isn’t a holiday – it is crucial bonding time. We know that paternity leave has huge benefits for the whole family: children do better in the education system, and there is research to suggest they have better physical health. Paternity lea... See more

A government review from 2023, external suggests almost half (45%) of all dads weren't even aware shared parental leave was an option.

And it was used in fewer than 2% of all births last year.