Adoption Leave Policy & Procedure

About this policy

This policy sets out the arrangements for adoption leave and pay for employees who are:

• Adopting a child through a UK or overseas adoption agency.
• Fostering a child with a view to possible adoption.
• Having a child through a surrogate mother.

Arrangements for time off to attend adoption appointments are set out in the Company time off for adoption appointments policy.

In some cases, an employee and their spouse or partner may be eligible to opt into the shared parental leave (SPL) scheme which gives more flexibility to share the leave and pay available in the first year after the child is placed with them. However, one of the individual’s must take at least two weeks' adoption leave first. Please refer to the Company shared parental leave policy.

This policy only applies to employees. It does not apply to agency workers or self-employed contractors.

It does not form part of any employee's contract of employment and may be amended at any time.

Entitlements

Adoption leave

In adoption cases or fostering for adoption cases, individuals are entitled to adoption leave if they meet all the following conditions:

• They are adopting a child through a UK adoption agency, or they are a local authority foster parent who has been approved as a prospective adopter.
• The adoption agency or local authority has given them written notice that it has matched them with a child for adoption, or that it will be placing a child with them under a fostering for adoption arrangement, and tells them the date the child is expected to be placed into their care (Expected Placement Date).
• They have notified the agency that they agree to the child being placed with them on the Expected Placement Date.

If an employee is adopting through an overseas adoption agency, please refer to section paragraph 4 below.

• In a surrogacy case, an individual is entitled to adoption leave if all the following conditions are met:
  A surrogate mother gives birth to a child who is biologically their child, the child of their spouse or partner, or the child of both of them.
• They expect to be given parental responsibility for the child under a parental order from the court. The child must live with them and they must apply for the parental order within six months of the child's birth.

Only one parent can take adoption leave. If an employee’s spouse or partner takes adoption leave with their employer, they will not be entitled to adoption leave but they may be entitled to paternity leave and/or shared parental leave.

The maximum adoption leave entitlement is 52 weeks, consisting of 26 weeks' ordinary adoption leave (OAL) and 26 weeks' additional adoption leave (AAL).

Statutory adoption pay

Statutory adoption pay (SAP) is payable for up to 39 weeks. It stops being payable if an employee returns to work sooner or if the placement is disrupted. An individual is entitled to SAP if:

• They have been continuously employed for at least 26 weeks ending with the week in which the agency notified them that they had been matched with the child (Qualifying Week) and are still employed by the Company during that week;
• Their average weekly earnings during the 8 weeks ending with the Qualifying Week (Relevant Period) are not less than the lower earnings limit set by the government; and
• They have given the relevant notifications under this policy.
  SAP is calculated as follows:
• First 6 weeks: SAP is paid at the earnings-related rate of 90% of the employee’s average earnings over the Relevant Period.
• Remaining 33 weeks: SAP is paid at the prescribed rate which is set by the government for the relevant tax year, or the Earnings-related Rate if this is lower.

SAP accrues with each complete week of absence and payments are made on the next normal payroll date. Income tax, National Insurance and pension contributions are deducted as appropriate.

If an employee leaves employment for any reason (for example, if they resign or are made redundant) they are still eligible for SAP if they have already been notified by an agency that they have been matched with a child. In such cases, SAP starts:

• 14 days before the Expected Placement Date; or
• The day after their employment ends,
  whichever is the later.

Notification requirements

Adoption cases

Not more than 7 days after the agency or local authority notifies an employee in writing that it has matched them with a child (or where that is not reasonably practicable, as soon as reasonably practicable), they must give their line manager notice in writing of the Expected Placement Date, and their intended start date for adoption leave (Intended Start Date).

The Company will then write to the individual within 28 days to inform of the date they would be due to return to work (Expected Return Date) assuming they intend to take their full entitlement to adoption leave.

Once an employee receives the matching certificate issued by the adoption agency, a copy must be provided.

Surrogacy cases

In a surrogacy case, an employee must inform their line manager in writing of their intention to take adoption leave and give the expected week of childbirth (EWC). The individual must give this information by the end of the 15th week before the EWC, or if that is not reasonably practicable, as soon as is reasonably practicable.

The Company will confirm in writing, within 28 days of receiving your notification, their Expected Return Date assuming they intend to take their full entitlement to adoption leave.
When the child is born the employee must confirm their date of birth in writing.

Overseas adoptions

If an employee is adopting a child from overseas, the requirements set out in this policy are varied as follows:

• They must have received notification that the adoption has been approved by the relevant UK authority (Official Notification).
• They must give their line manager notice in writing of:
  
  • Their intention to take adoption leave;
  • The date they received Official Notification; and
  • The date the child is expected to arrive in Great Britain.

This notice should be given as early as possible but in any case within 28 days of receiving Official Notification (or, if an employee has less than 26 weeks' employment with the Company at the date of Official Notification, within 30 weeks of starting employment).

The individual must also give at least 28 days' notice in writing of their Intended Start Date. This can be the date the child arrives in Great Britain or a predetermined date no more than 28 days after the child's arrival in Great Britain.

They must also notify the Company of the actual date the child arrives in Great Britain within 28 days of that date.

The Company may also ask for a copy of the Official Notification and evidence of the date the child arrived in Great Britain.

Starting adoption leave

In adoption or fostering for adoption cases, OAL may start on a predetermined date no more than 14 days before the Expected Placement Date, or on the date of placement itself, but no later.

If an employee wishes to change their Intended Start Date they must request this in writing. They should give us as much notice as possible, but at least 28 days before the original Intended Start Date (or the new Intended Start Date if they are bringing the date forward). The Company will confirm their new Expected Return Date in writing within 28 days.

In a surrogacy case, OAL will start on the day the child is born, unless the employee is at work, in which case it will start on the following day. This start date cannot be changed.

During adoption leave

Contact/keeping in touch days

The employee and the Company have the right to make reasonable contact with each other during the adoption leave period, for instance to ask whether it is still the employee's intention to return to work on the expected date or to make the employee aware of important changes at work.

In addition to, subject to agreement with their line manager, the employee may work for up to 10 days during their adoption leave (these are called keeping in touch days or KIT days). This means that they can carry out work, for which they will be paid, without affecting their adoption pay.

Benefits

During adoption leave, the employee continues to receive all her contractual benefits except wages or salary.

Annual leave thereby continues to accrue. In many cases a period of adoption leave will last beyond the end of the holiday year. Any holiday entitlement for the year that is not taken or cannot reasonably be taken before starting their adoption leave can be carried over to the next holiday year and must be taken immediately before returning to work. However, an employee should try to limit the amount of annual leave carried over and discuss holiday plans with their line manager in good time before starting their adoption leave. All holiday dates are subject to approval by a line manager and must be requested via normal internal procedures.

Pension contributions will continue to be deducted during the paid portion of adoption leave but will not accrue during the unpaid portion. If the employee wishes to maintain their contribution levels during unpaid leave, please contact the reward team.

Redundancy situations

The employee is protected from selection for redundancy for reasons connected to adoption. However, if a redundancy situation arises during their adoption leave, the normal procedure for redundancy will be followed. This also applies where variations to contract occur.

Transfer of adoption leave/Shared parental leave

Shared parental leave (SPL) enables employees to commit to ending their adoption leave and pay at a future date, and to share the untaken balance of leave and pay as SPL and pay with their partner, or to return to work early from adoption leave and opt in to SPL and pay at a later date. 

SPL should not be confused with ordinary parental leave, which is unaffected by SPL. Ordinary parental leave is the entitlement to up to 18 weeks' unpaid leave. The Company provides a separate policy on ordinary parental leave.

However, SPL does replace additional paternity leave.

Disrupted adoption

In an adoption or fostering for adoption case, adoption leave is disrupted if it has started but:

• The employee is notified that the placement will not take place;
• The child is returned to the adoption agency after placement; or
• The child dies after placement.

In a surrogacy case, adoption leave is disrupted where an employee does not apply for a parental order within the relevant time, or the court does not grant a parental order and the time limit for appeal or further application has expired, or where the child dies.

In the event of disruption, their entitlement to adoption leave and pay (if applicable) will continue for a further 8 weeks from the end of the week in which disruption occurred, unless their entitlement to leave or pay would have ended earlier in the normal course of events.

Returning to work

If the employee returns to work after OAL, they will be entitled to return to their previous job and on no less favourable terms and conditions than would have applied had they not taken adoption leave.

If the employee has taken any period over 26 weeks’ adoption leave (AAL) and it is no longer reasonably practical for the employee to return to their old job, they are entitled to return to another job which is both suitable and appropriate, with similar responsibilities and status as well as the same terms and conditions.

Flexible working

The Company will manage any requests by employees to change their working patterns (such as working part-time) after adoption leave on a case-by-case basis. There is no absolute right to insist on working part-time, but an employee has a statutory right to request flexible working and the Company will consider the request bearing in mind the needs of the business. It is helpful if requests are made as early as possible. The procedure for dealing with such requests is set out in the Company flexible working policy and procedure.