Maternity and paternity pay
About the support available if you are going to become a parent
Maternity pay
Maternity pay provides financial support to take time off work when having a baby. The standard entitlement for employees is called Statutory Maternity Leave and Statutory Maternity Pay. Different employers may have more generous policies, so it’s worth speaking with your employer to find out what they offer.
People taking maternity leave also have various rights and protections – for example, they accrue holiday pay during this time and are protected from redundancy.
You can find out more about maternity leave and pay from gov.uk, Citizens’ Advice and MoneyHelper.
Paternity pay
Paternity leave and pay allows parents to take time off work when their partner is having a baby, is adopting a child or having a baby through surrogacy. The standard entitlement is called Statutory Paternity Leave and Statutory Paternity Pay. This allows for two weeks of leave, but different employers may have more generous policies.
You can find out more about paternity leave and pay from gov.uk, Citizens Advice and MoneyHelper.
Shared parental leave
Shared Parental Leave allows couples to split their leave and pay when having a baby. You can find out more from gov.uk and Citizens Advice.
Other resources
Some other resources that might be useful are:
- MoneyHelper’s webpages on becoming a parent offer guidance on pay, rights, childcare costs, financial support and more.
- Citizens Advice have webpages on maternity and parental rights.
Image credits
Header image: Ling App
Lawrence Crayton
Quilia
Tanaphong Toochinda
Michal Bar Haim