LAST UPDATED NOVEMBER 2023

This policy sets out your rights and responsibilities if you are adopting or have recently adopted a child through an approved adoption agency and gives details of the arrangements for adoption leave and adoption pay.

The right to adoption leave applies regardless of the sex of the individual requesting adoption leave.

TELLING US YOU ARE ADOPTING

If you are intending to adopt a child and take adoption leave, it would be great if you could notify your manager as soon as you feel comfortable.

In any case, within 7 days of being notified by your adoption agency that you have been matched with a child for adoption (unless this is not reasonably practicable), you are required to inform your manager in writing of:

• Your intention to take adoption leave;
• When the child is expected to be placed with you;
• When you want your adoption leave to start and;
• If you wish to change the start date of your adoption leave, you are required to give the agency at least 28 days’ notice before the original start date requested, or 28 days before the new start date, whichever is the earlier.

You may be required to provide documentary evidence (a matching certificate) from your adoption agency as evidence of your entitlement to Statutory Adoption Pay (SAP).

QUALIFYING FOR ADOPTION LEAVE

To qualify for Adoption Leave you must:

• Be ‘newly’ matched with a child for adoption from an approved adoption agency
• Where a couple adopt jointly, you must choose which partner will take adoption leave; the other partner may then choose to take up to two weeks paternity leave, if eligible.
• Adoption leave is not available to step parents who subsequently adopt their partner’s children or to grandparents who adopt their grandchildren.

ADOPTION LEAVE ENTITLEMENT