Shared Parental Leave: How It Works and What Employers Must Do

Shared parental leave (SPL) allows eligible parents to share up to 50 weeks of leave and up to 37 weeks of statutory pay between them after the birth or adoption of a child. Despite being available since 2015, uptake remains low — largely because the system is complex and many employers struggle to administer it correctly.

This guide breaks down how SPL works from the employer's perspective, what you are legally required to do, and how to manage the process without getting tangled in the procedural requirements.

How shared parental leave works

SPL is created when the mother (or primary adopter) curtails their maternity leave or maternity allowance period. The remaining balance of the 52-week entitlement — minus the compulsory 2 weeks of maternity leave — becomes available as shared parental leave, which can be split between both parents.

The key concept is that SPL converts unused maternity leave into a flexible pot that both parents can draw from. The mother must take at least 2 weeks of maternity leave after birth (4 weeks if she works in a factory), but can curtail the rest at any point and convert it to SPL.

Eligibility requirements

Both parents must meet separate eligibility criteria for the employee to take SPL:

The employment and earnings test

The other parent does not need to be an employee — they just need to show they have been economically active. This means the test can be met by self-employed partners, agency workers, or even someone who has been working abroad, provided they meet the minimum earnings threshold.

The notice process

This is the most procedurally demanding part of SPL administration. There are three separate notices the employee must provide:

1. Maternity leave curtailment notice — The mother must give at least 8 weeks' notice of the date she intends to end her maternity leave. This can be given before or after the birth but is binding once the SPL has started (unless the mother has not yet returned to work).

2. Notice of entitlement and intention — Both parents must give their respective employers at least 8 weeks before the first period of SPL begins. This notice must include the expected due date, the maternity leave start and curtailment dates, the total SPL and ShPP available, how much each parent intends to take (indicative, not binding), and signed declarations from both parents.

3. Period of leave notice — At least 8 weeks before each block of SPL, the employee must submit a period of leave notice specifying the start and end dates. Employees can submit up to 3 period of leave notices — though you can agree to accept more.

Shared parental pay

Statutory shared parental pay (ShPP) is paid at the same rate as statutory maternity pay after the first 6 weeks — £187.18 per week or 90% of average weekly earnings, whichever is lower (2025/26 rates). The enhanced 90% rate that applies to the first 6 weeks of maternity pay does not carry over to ShPP.

The total ShPP available is 37 weeks minus however many weeks of statutory maternity pay the mother has already received. For example, if the mother received 10 weeks of SMP before curtailing, there are 27 weeks of ShPP to share.

You can recover ShPP from HMRC at the same rates as other statutory payments — 103% for small employers, 92% for everyone else. Process it through your normal payroll and report it via RTI.

For calculating the payroll impact, use our Payroll Tax Calculator.

Managing SPL requests practically

The procedural complexity of SPL means many employers dread receiving requests. Here is a straightforward process:

When you receive a notice of entitlement, verify the employee's continuous service and check the declarations are complete. You have 14 days to request evidence (such as the baby's birth certificate or the other parent's employer details). When you receive a period of leave notice for continuous leave, you must accept it provided the notice requirements are met. For discontinuous leave requests, you have 14 days to agree, propose alternatives, or refuse. If you refuse, the employee can withdraw the request within 15 days or convert it to a continuous block.

Keep a central log of all SPL notices, curtailment dates, and leave periods. The multiple overlapping notice requirements make careful record-keeping essential.

SPLIT days (Shared Parental Leave In Touch)

Similar to KIT days during maternity leave, employees on SPL can work up to 20 SPLIT days without ending their leave or losing ShPP. These are separate from the 10 KIT days available during maternity leave — an employee who takes both maternity leave and SPL could work up to 30 days in total.

SPLIT days must be agreed by both the employee and employer — neither party can insist on them. Payment for SPLIT days should be agreed in advance and is additional to ShPP.

For the broader context on family leave, see our maternity and paternity leave guide and our time off for dependants guide.

Key takeaways

Shared parental leave converts unused maternity leave into a flexible pot that both parents can share. The system is procedurally complex — there are three separate notices, a 3-notice limit, and different rules for continuous and discontinuous leave. Your job as an employer is to verify eligibility, respond within the required timeframes, and keep accurate records. Consider equalising enhanced pay across all family leave to encourage uptake. Use our PTO Calculator to model leave balances, and review our managing annual leave guide for handling holiday accrual during extended leave periods.