EMPLOYMENT LAW


PATERNITY LEAVE SYSTEM NOT FIT FOR MODERN FAMILIES


Police Federation continues pressing for family related leave from day one on full pay


Police officers across England and Wales say they are being left behind by outdated and inconsistent paternity leave rules, despite wider reforms to family rights coming into force for other workers this year. From April 2026, the Employment Rights Act gave all employees a day one right to unpaid paternity leave. Police officers, however, will still need 26 weeks of service by the fifteenth week before the baby is due in order to qualify for paternity leave. They can take one or two consecutive weeks within 56 days of the birth or adoption, and forces must pay at


40 | POLICE | JUNE | 2026


least Statutory Paternity Pay. Enhanced pay is offered in some forces, but there is no national standard. Police Federation Deputy National


“While the rest of the workforce moves forward with day one rights, policing is stuck with qualifying periods that actively disadvantage new parents.”


Secretary Mel Warnes said the gap between statutory rights and police entitlements had become “impossible to defend”. She said: “Officers are being held to rules that belong to another era.


While the rest of the workforce moves forward with day one rights, policing is stuck with qualifying periods that actively disadvantage new parents. It sends a very clear message that their family responsibilities are somehow less important.”


Although the entitlement appears clear on paper, many officers describe a very different experience in


practice. Several say they felt pressured not to take the full two weeks, often because of concerns about leaving teams short staffed. Others said they were encouraged to use annual leave instead,


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