Family Friendly FAQ

Please refer to the Maternity Policy and Guidance Note or for Teachers & Associated Professionals refer to SNCT 49 – Maternity and Adoption Leave and Pay which details the full steps to be taken.

For further guidance, you should raise a case on the myNL Portal using the People Helpdesk General Enquiry Form, or where you are not yet live on the Portal, you can call on (01698) 4031511.

They should submit their request in writing using Letter 1 available within the Smarter Working Guidance Note. You should meet the employee initially to find out if this is a permanent or temporary request. If temporary (and it can be accommodated), speak to your HR Business Partner and then confirm the temporary adjustment in writing.

Pregnant employees have the right to paid time off for antenatal care. Antenatal care’ isn’t just medical appointments – it can also include antenatal or parenting classes if they’ve been recommended by a doctor or midwife. Employers must give pregnant employees time off for antenatal care and pay their normal rate for this time off. The father or pregnant woman’s partner has the right to unpaid time off work to go to 2 antenatal appointments. Maternity leave and Statutory Maternity Pay will start automatically if the employee is off work for a pregnancy-related illness in the 4 weeks before the baby is due – it doesn’t matter what has been previously agreed.

Time off with pay is available to employees that meet the eligibility criteria set out in the Special Leave Policy, full details can be found in the policy.

Applications for Maternity/Adoption Support Leave and Statutory Paternity Leave can be found here.

Child related leave policies can also be found here.

Non-teaching staff – are now entitled to 4 weeks paid paternity leave and should be recorded as 2 weeks paternity leave and 2 weeks other paid leave.

Full details of Shared Parental Leave eligibility can be found in the Special Leave policy.

You must notify your manager during the Qualifying Week, i.e. the 15th week before the Expected Week of Childbirth that you intend to exercise your right to take maternity leave.

Please refer to the Maternity Policy and Guidance Note which details the full steps to be taken.

For further guidance, you should raise a case on the myNL Portal using the People Helpdesk General Enquiry Form, or where you are not yet live on the Portal, you can call on (01698) 403151.

These will no longer be undertaken. Please refer to the Maternity Policy and Guidance Note which details the full steps to be taken.

For further guidance, you should raise a case on the myNL Portal using the People Helpdesk General Enquiry Form, or where you are not yet live on the Portal, you can call on (01698) 403151.

You continue to accrue annual leave throughout your maternity leave period, even during a period of unpaid maternity leave. It is not possible to split your maternity leave with a period of annual leave. Annual leave can only be taken before or after your maternity leave period. Despite your maternity leave, the normal annual leave rules continue to apply, i.e. employees’ annual leave must be taken before 31 January of the following leave year or it will be lost.

You decide when your maternity leave will start but the earliest date is the Sunday, 11 weeks before the Sunday of the week in which your baby is due. The latest start date is the Sunday of the week in which your baby is due.

You should raise a case on the myNL Portal using the People Helpdesk General Enquiry Form, or where you are not yet live on the Portal, you can call on (01698) 403151.

You should raise a case on the myNL Portal using the People Helpdesk General Enquiry Form, or where you are not yet live on the Portal, you can call on (01698) 403151.

Maternity is only paid for 39 wks of 52 wks leave.

If it has ended sooner, please contact the People Helpdesk via the myNL Portal using the People Helpdesk General Enquiry Form, or where you are not yet live on the Portal, you can call on (01698) 403151 for assistance.

If mutually agreed by manager and employee, an employee can work up to 10 paid days during their maternity, adoption or additional paternity leave. These days are called ‘keeping in touch days’. It is the managers responsibility to ensure that over the 10 days a maximum of 70 hours (or pro rated for part time workers) is not exceeded. This limit is set by the Scottish Government.

All pregnant employees of the Council are entitled to maternity leave. Further information can be found in the Maternity Policy and Guidance Note.