UK: Neonatal care leave to be available from 6 April 2025

The Government has confirmed that it intends to bring the new neonatal care leave and pay rights into force on 6 April 2025.  Draft regulations have now been published for parliamentary approval, setting out the detail of the new rights under the Neonatal Care (Leave and Pay) Act 2023 (covered in our blog post here).  While the new rights are similar to other family leave entitlements, there are a few minor points of difference and certain provisions (the notice required and how leave is taken) are more complex as they vary depending on when the leave is taken.  Employers should consider putting in place a neonatal care leave policy, covering the statutory rights as a minimum, but may also want to introduce a more generous entitlement, for example in terms of pay or duration.

• Statutory Neonatal Care Leave is to be a day one right, while Statutory Neonatal Care Pay will be available to eligible employees with 26 weeks' continuous service at the relevant date and earnings not less than the lower earnings limit, and will be paid at the same rate as statutory paternity pay (the statutory flat rate or 90% earnings if lower).  
• The rights will apply in relation to children born on or after 6 April 2025.  Parents of babies, who are admitted into neonatal care within 28 days of birth and who have a continuous stay in hospital of 7 full continuous days or longer, will be able to take one week’s leave for every week the child (or any one child from a multiple birth) spends in neonatal care, up to 12 weeks (the maximum for multiple births too). 
• Neonatal care is defined as medical care in a hospital (including a maternity home, clinic or outpatient department), medical care in another place to which the child is moved on leaving hospital (provided the care is under the direction of a consultant and includes ongoing monitoring by and visits from healthcare professionals arranged by that hospital), and palliative or end of life care. 
• The entitlement is on top of any other family leave entitlement.  Leave can be taken while the child is still receiving neonatal care (although not starting before the second week of neonatal care) or after other family leave has been taken.  This will enable an employee on other forms of statutory parental leave such as maternity leave to add their neonatal leave entitlement on to the end of those other entitlements (as stopping maternity leave to take neonatal leave would mean losing the rest of the maternity leave entitlement). 
• Neonatal care leave must be taken before the end of 68 weeks beginning with the date of birth, and must be to care for the child (unless the child dies or an adoption placement ceases).
• Leave taken while the child is in neonatal care or up to 7 days after neonatal care ends (the "tier 1 period") can be taken in non-consecutive blocks of a minimum of one week (this is likely only to be taken by the child's father/mother's partner/secondary adopter, given tier 1 will end prior to maternity/adoption leave periods).  Leave taken in the remainder of the 68 week period (the "tier 2 period") must be taken in one continuous block.  
• Employees must give notice of taking leave, confirming certain information (the child’s date of birth, the start and end date of neonatal care, how much leave they want to take and confirmation that they are eligible for leave and are taking it to care for their child).  For tier 1 leave the notice must be given before the first day of absence or as soon as reasonably practicable.  For tier 2 leave, 15 days' notice is required for a single week of leave and 28 days' notice for two or more consecutive weeks of leave.  The employer and employee can agree to waive the notice requirements.
• The parental relationships covered, protections from detriment and dismissal, rights during absence and on return, and redundancy protection during leave (and during an additional protected period where at least six consecutive weeks of neonatal care leave have been taken) are similar to those in place for shared parental leave. 

The Government intends to publish website guides before 6 April and has also asked Acas to publish guidance for employers once the legislation is in force.

Please do get in touch with your usual HSF contact if you would like assistance drafting a neonatal care leave policy.