Family Friendly Rights

A coalition of academics, charities, and trade unions is now urging the government to launch a wide-ranging review of parental leave. This would include maternity, paternity, and shared leave, along with how time off and pay are structured. In an open letter addressed to Employment Minister Justin Madders (dated 2 May 2025) 15 academics and 18 organisations—co-ordinated by the charity Working Families—outlined key proposals for reform. Signatories include the TUC, Save the Ch

Over the next three weeks we will be releasing a series of articles looking at parental leave and recent calls for reform in the UK. This week we take a look at the forms of parental leave that are available to employees and how they work. Maternity leave A parent has the right to up to 52 weeks’ maternity leave if they are having a baby and are legally classed as an employee. They have this right from their first day of starting a job. By law, they must take at least 2 weeks