ADOPTION LEAVE

If intending to adopt a child from either within the UK or overseas, the employee must have worked continuously for JTL for 26 weeks ending with the week in which they are notified of being matched with the child to be adopted in order to be eligible for adoption pay. The employee must inform their manager of the planned date of leave within 7 days of being notified by the adoption agency (or as soon as reasonably practicable if this is not possible), specifying when the child is expected to be placed for adoption and when they want the adoption leave to start.

Employees who are adopting who meet qualifying conditions based on length of service are entitled to 39 weeks’ Statutory Adoption Pay at the rate prevailing at the time. This will be available to parent(s) adopting children up to 18 years of age where the child is newly placed for adoption.

Where a couple jointly adopt, only one partner is entitled to take adoption leave whilst the other partner may be entitled to take Paternity Leave. In the case of unmarried couples only one partner is legally entitled to adopt a child. In such a case, only the partner who legally adopts the child is entitled to Adoption Leave though again the other partner may be entitled to Statutory Paternity Leave.

Adoption Leave and pay are not available in circumstances where a child is not newly matched for adoption, for example, where a step-parent adopts a partner’s child.

Further details about adoption leave and pay and JTL entitlements are available from the Human Resources Department and online at www.directgov.co.uk.

Employees who are eligible for statutory maternity leave or statutory adoption leave may wish to share their leave entitlement with the child’s other parent, providing they also have the requisite length of continuous employment and will also have responsibility for care of the child. In this case, Shared Parental Leave may be taken and full details of this are available from the Human Resources Department.