From 6 April 2025, the Neonatal Care (Leave and Pay) Act 2023 (“the Act”) introduces two new statutory rights: neonatal care leave and neonatal care pay. The Act, which received Royal Assent on 24 May 2023, will come into effect nearly two years later, providing significant support to parents of babies requiring neonatal care.
The Act grants eligible parents up to 12 weeks’ leave and pay when their baby requires neonatal care. This entitlement is available to both parents and is in addition to existing family-related leave rights, such as:
- maternity leave and pay;
- adoption leave and pay;
- shared parental leave and pay; and
- paternity leave and pay.
The introduction of neonatal care leave and pay provides much-needed support for parents. Before its introduction on April 6, parents who need to take time off work have to rely annual leave, other family-related leave or on supportive employers offering discretionary time off. The government estimates that around 60,000 parents will be eligible for the new entitlements and around 34,000 parents will take them up each year.
Neonatal Care Leave
Neonatal care leave will apply where a baby is born on or after 6 April 2025, provided they receive neonatal care starting within 28 days of birth and remain in care for seven or more continuous days.
Neonatal care means:
- Medical care received in a hospital
- Medical care received in any other place where:
- the child was an inpatient in hospital and the care is received upon that child leaving hospital;
- the care is under the direction of a consultant; and
- the care includes ongoing monitoring by, and visits to the child from, healthcare professionals arranged by the hospital where the child was an inpatient.
- Palliative or end of life care.
This will be a “day one” right, meaning eligible employees can access neonatal care leave from the first day of their employment with no minimum qualifying service requirement for entitlement. This aligns with the government’s broader reform to employment law as outlined in the Employment Rights Bill.
To be eligible, at the date of birth, an employee must be the child’s parent, intended parent, or partner of the child’s mother, or be the child’s adopter, prospective adopter or partner of the same.
Eligible employees can then take one week’s leave for each week that the baby receives neonatal care without interruption, up to a maximum of 12 weeks. Neonatal care leave must be taken within 68 weeks of the child’s birth, with most employees expected to take it following other family-related leave, such as maternity or adoption leave.
To commence a period of neonatal care leave, an employee must provide the necessary notice to their employer. Depending on circumstances and the type of statutory family leave to which the employee is entitled, they may already be taking other family-related leave, such as maternity leave or adoption leave, when the child starts receiving neonatal care. For this reason, the notice and evidence requirements are different, depending on whether the employee takes neonatal care leave in what are described in the legislation as the “tier 1” or “tier 2” periods.
“Tier 1” describes the period when the child is still receiving neonatal care. “Tier 2” describes the period outside the tier 1 period in which the employee is entitled to take neonatal care leave (before the end of 68 weeks from the date of the child’s birth). It is important to note that the employee and employer can agree between them to waive the notice requirements.
What is statutory neonatal care pay?
Whilst statutory neonatal care leave is a “day one” right, statutory neonatal care pay is available to those meeting continuity of service and minimum earnings requirements.
To be eligible for statutory neonatal care pay, an employee must have at least 26 weeks’ continuous service ending with the relevant week. The employee must have received normal weekly earnings, for a period of eight weeks ending with the relevant week, of not less than the lower earnings limit.
Neonatal care pay is paid at the same rate as statutory paternity pay or statutory shared parental pay. It may be paid for a maximum of 12 weeks and is payable within the first 68 weeks after the child’s birth.
Employers may choose to offer an enhanced rate of pay for neonatal care leave, in line with their broader family-related leave policies.
Employee protections
Employees taking neonatal care leave will be afforded the same protections as other forms of family-related leave, such as maternity or paternity leave. This includes protection from dismissal or detriment as a result of taking the leave, the right to return to the same role (or in certain circumstances, a suitable alternative) after the leave period, and the right to be offered suitable alternative employment on redundancy in priority to other employees.
Guidance for employers
With the confirmation that neonatal care leave and pay entitlements will come into effect on 6 April 2025, employers should begin preparing for these changes. Key steps include:
- Policy implementation: employers should review and update their existing policies to incorporate the new entitlements, ensuring they clearly outline eligibility, leave duration and pay entitlements.
- Establishing internal procedures: employers should develop clear internal processes for employees to request neonatal care entitlements, including guidelines on how to notify their employer and required documentation.
- Employee guidance and support: employers should provide employees with information and support regarding their right to neonatal care leave and pay, including what to expect during the leave period and available resources to ensure that employees fully understand their entitlements and feel supported.
- Management and HR training: it is essential that managers and HR professionals are trained on the specifics of the new entitlements to ensure smooth operation, consistent application of the entitlement and effective support for parents.
Further guidance
As the implementation date of 6 April 2025 approaches, further detailed written guidance is expected from the government. ACAS is also set to release additional guidance for employers once the legislation comes into force.
For assistance on the topics covered above, or to discuss other employment law matters, please contact partner and head of employment Nick Smith or solicitor Hannah MacLeod by calling the office on 0191 281 6151 or emailing enquiries@mincoffs.co.uk.
