Part 5 - Members' Parental Leave Scheme

2.1     Members giving birth are entitled to up to six months’ maternity leave from the due date, with the option to extend up to 52 weeks by agreement with the relevant Group Leader or, where a member is a Group Leader or is not a member of a political group, the Chair of Council in consultation with the Monitoring Officer.

2.2     Members are entitled to take two weeks’ paternity leave if they are the biological father or nominated carer of their partner/spouse following birth.

2.3      A member who adopts a child through an approved adoption agency shall be entitled to take up to six months’ adoption leave from the date of placement, with the option to extend up to 52 weeks by agreement with the relevant Group Leader or, where a member is a Group Leader or is not a member of a political group, the Chair of Council in consultation with the Monitoring Officer.

2.4     Any member who takes leave retains their legal duty under the Local Government Act 1972 to attend a meeting of the Council within a six month period unless Council agrees to an extended leave of absence prior to the expiration of that six month period. The normal expectation is that Council will approve an absence period of more than six months.

2.5     Any member intending to take leave will be responsible for ensuring that they comply with the relevant notice requirements of the Council, both in terms of the point at which the leave starts and the point at which they return.

2.6     Any member taking leave should ensure that they respond to reasonable requests for information as promptly as possible, and they keep officers and colleagues informed and updated in relation to intended dates of return and requests for extension of leave.