Paternity and maternity support leave

The Paternity/Maternity Support Leave Policy sets out the entitlements and support available to employees of Imperial College London who wish to take Paternity/Maternity Support Leave. 

Imperial is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion.  Implementation of this procedure must be clear, transparent, and free of any unfair or discriminatory practices. 

Line managers and supervisors are required to familiarise themselves with and understand this procedure. Members of staff are encouraged to contact the Staff Hub to discuss their entitlement. 

Imperial’s Values are at the very centre of our work and guide our behaviour as a community, across all levels of the university. This policy aims to protect and promote our Values of Respect, Collaboration, Excellence, Integrity and Innovation. 

The Paternity/Maternity Support Leave Policy applies to employees of Imperial College London who meet the eligibility requirements set out at 3 and whose baby was born or placed with them for adoption on or after 1 August 2025.

There is no qualifying length of service to be eligible for Paternity/Maternity Support Leave and pay.

You must have, or expect to have, responsibility for the child’s upbringing and must be one of the following:

i)   The father of the child and/or

ii)  The husband, civil partner, or partner of the mother (this includes same-sex partners) and/or

iii) The partner of the primary adoptive parent and/or

iv) The intended parent (if you’re having a baby through a surrogacy arrangement)

and

v)  An Imperial College London employee on the date the child is born/placed with you for adoption.

If you meet the eligibility criteria set out in section 3 above, you are entitled to take up to four weeks' Paternity/Maternity Support leave at full pay. 

This includes the entitlement to two weeks statutory paternity pay (SPP) for employees with more than 26 weeks service at the Notification Week (15th week before the expected week of childbirth), provided that the average weekly earnings are above the lower earnings limit for National Insurance contributions.

You can choose to take the leave as consecutive weeks or up to 4 separate one-week blocks. It cannot be taken as odd days.

You can choose to start your leave: 

• from the date of your child’s birth (whether this is earlier or later than expected); or
• from a chosen number of days or weeks after the date of your child’s birth (whether this is earlier or later than expected); or
• from a chosen date later than the first day of the week in which your baby is expected to be born.

Leave can start on any day of the week on or following the child’s birth, but it must be completed:

• within 52 weeks of the actual date of birth of your child (or due date, if the baby is early) or
• if you are adopting, leave must be completed within 52 weeks of the date of placement of your child for adoption.  

If you specify the date of birth as the day you wish to start your leave and you are at work on that day, leave will begin on the following day.

Only four weeks of leave will be available to you, irrespective of whether more than one child is born as a result of the same pregnancy or placed together as a result of the adoption.

Eligible staff may also wish to consider Shared Parental Leave (SPL) or Parental Leave.

If you wish to take a period of SPL, please note the following:

Where the expected week of childbirth was before 5 April 2026, or the child was born or placed for adoption before 6 April 2026, Paternity/Maternity Support Leave must be taken in full before SPL begins. Any entitlement to paternity/maternity support leave and pay will end once SPL has commenced.

For births or placements on, or after 6 April 2026, eligible employees may take paternity leave after shared parental leave where:

·        the expected week of childbirth is on or after 5 April 2026;

·        the child is born on or after 6 April 2026 (even if the expected week of childbirth was before 5 April 2026); or

·        the child is expected to be placed for adoption with the adopter (or enter Great Britain for adoptions from overseas) on or after 6 April 2026.

If you intend to take both Shared Parental Leave and Paternity/Maternity Support Leave, the combined entitlement is a maximum of 18 weeks leave at the normal rate of full pay (inclusive of any statutory pay which may be due), and up to 52 weeks of leave in total, to be taken within the first 52 weeks following the birth or placement.

In addition to Paternity Leave/Maternity Support leave and Shared Parental Leave, four weeks of unpaid leave may be applied for under the Parental Leave scheme. Further information on Parental Leave is available in the Special Leave Policy. 

Members of staff whose partners are having a baby are entitled to paid time off to accompany their pregnant partner to two antenatal appointments, arranged on the advice of a doctor, registered midwife or registered health visitor. Antenatal care is not restricted to medical examinations – for example, it could include parenting classes – as long as these are advised by a registered medical practitioner, midwife or health visitor. 

You should give your manager as much notice as possible of appointments and formally request your absence through the TeamSeer absence management system. 

Your manager may ask you to confirm in writing the time and date of the appointment, the nature of your relationship with the pregnant person and that the purpose of the time off is to attend an antenatal appointment. 

To apply for this leave, you should let your manager know you’re planning on taking leave and complete part one of the online Paternity/Maternity Support/Adoption Pay and Leave Request form on the Staff Hub Portal. You will need to complete part two of the form once the baby is born or placed with you.

You must give at least 28 days’ notice, or notice within 7 days of being notified by the adoption agency that you have been matched with a child for adoption, before each period of leave. If you are unable to meet these timescales, you must provide notice as soon as is reasonably practicable. The Staff Hub will add the leave to your TeamSeer absence management system record.

You are entitled to receive full contractual annual leave, both holiday and mandatory leave, during your paternity/maternity support leave period.

Any mandatory leave days which fall during your paternity/maternity support leave period should be added to and taken as holiday leave. Mandatory leave days which fall before or after your paternity/maternity support leave period should be taken as normal.

If your baby is born on or after 6 April 2025, you are eligible to accrue neonatal care leave if the following conditions are met: 

• Your baby needs at least seven consecutive days of neonatal care within the first 28 days after birth.
• You are the child’s parent, the child’s intended parent (applicable to surrogacy) or the child’s adopter or prospective adopter (applicable to adoptions) and have responsibility for the upbringing of the child; or
• You are the partner of the child’s mother, adopter or prospective adopter and have or expect to have the main responsibility for the upbringing of the child (apart from the mother), and
• The leave must be used to care for the baby. 

Neonatal care leave allows you to accrue one week of leave for every seven consecutive days your baby receives neonatal care, up to 12 weeks in total.   Neonatal care leave cannot interrupt your paternity/maternity support leave, but it can be taken before or after, provided it is taken within 68 weeks of the birth of your baby. 

Neonatal care leave is paid leave and is provided in addition to other family leave. Further information about this entitlement is set out in the Neonatal Care Leave Policy.

If your partner has a miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy or termination before 24 weeks of pregnancy, there are no entitlements to Paternity Leave. You may, however, request time off under the Special Leave Policy where appropriate.

If your partner has a stillbirth from 24 weeks of pregnancy onwards, or the baby only survives for a short period of time after birth, full paternity leave and paternity pay will be retained, irrespective of the timing of the birth. In addition, you are entitled to take 4 weeks’ paid bereavement leave, which can be added to the end of your paternity leave. For further details, please refer to the Special Leave Policy.

You can access support through Confidential Care, Imperial’s Employee Assistance Programme.

You may also wish to access support from various baby loss organisations. 

The university recognises that the death of a partner following the birth or adoption of a child is an extremely difficult and distressing circumstance. We are committed to supporting staff who experience bereavement in a sensitive and compassionate way. In the first instance, you are encouraged to speak with your line manager so that appropriate support can be discussed, including compassionate leave, which is available through the Special Leave Policy.

Bereaved Partner’s Paternity Leave may also be available where the mother or adopter of a child dies within the first year following the child’s birth or adoption. This leave is intended to support an employee who becomes responsible for the child following the death of their partner.

Bereaved Partner’s Paternity Leave applies where the death occurs on or after 6 April 2026, and the employee is the biological father or was the spouse, civil partner or partner of the child’s mother or adopter and has main responsibility for the child’s upbringing.

Eligible employees may take up to 52 weeks of unpaid Bereaved Partner’s Paternity Leave, which must be taken as one continuous period within 52 weeks of the child’s birth or adoption placement.

You should have a conversation with your line manager, and let them know, as soon as reasonably practice if you intend to take Bereaved Partner’s Paternity Leave.

During this leave, you will continue to accrue annual leave, and all other terms and conditions of employment will remain in place, except for normal pay. By agreement, you may undertake up to 10 keeping-in-touch days during your leave.

We recognise that this will be an extremely difficult time. You are encouraged to contact the Staff Hub for further information about Bereaved Partner’s Paternity Leave and any additional support that may be available. If you require further support, you are encouraged to speak with your line manager or the People Function, and any discussions will be handled sensitively and in confidence.

Early Years Education Centre (EYEC) 

Childcare for children aged 6 months to 5 years is available by application from the Early Years Education Centre. For details of fees and how to apply for a place, please contact the Manager or the Supervisor on 020 7594 5120 / 5121 or visit: https://www.imperial.ac.uk/early-years. 

Parent Buddy Scheme 

Imperial operates a Buddy Scheme, available both before and after maternity, adoption, and shared parental leave. The scheme provides the opportunity to be paired up with a returner from one of those categories of leave who has been back in the workplace for a few months and who can act as a sounding board to answer any questions. For further details, please email parents@imperial.ac.uk. 

Flexible Working

If you are thinking about changing your work pattern when you return to work, please speak to your line manager as soon as possible. Further information can be found in the Flexible Working Policy.

Confidential Care

Imperial’s employee assistance provider, Confidential Care, can offer you support by way of a help sheet, which gives basic suggestions that could help your return to work. A free 24-hour confidential advice line is also available for practical and emotional support.  

• Maternity Leave Policy
• Adoption Leave Policy
• Shared Parental Leave Policy
• Special Leave Policy
• Flexible Working Policy
• Neonatal Care Leave