Managing Adoption – Commonly asked Questions
Written by Andrew Johnson, Founder and CEO HRGuide - Wed 23rd Oct 2024
Q. When should an employee inform you about the fact they are requiring Adoption Leave/Pay?
A. In order to be entitled to take adoption leave and receive statutory adoption pay, the Employee is required to give the Employer written notification of his/her intention to take ordinary adoption leave specifying the date on which the child is expected to be placed with him/her for adoption and the date on which the employee intends his/her adoption leave to start. This notice must be given to the Employer no later than seven days after the date on which notification of the match with the child was provided by the adoption agency or where it is not reasonably practicable to give such notice, as soon as is reasonably practicable.
Notice, which must be in writing if the Employer requests it, must specify the date the child is expected to be placed with the Employee for adoption and the date the employee intends his/her adoption leave to start.
Q. What if they wish to change their start date?
A. If the Employee subsequently wishes to change the start date of his/her adoption leave, he/she must give 28 days’ written notice of the revised start date. The Employee must also, if the Employer requests it, provide evidence in the form of one or more documents issued by the adoption agency, of the name and address of the agency, the date on which the employee was notified of the adoption match and that date on which the agency expects to place the child with the employee.
Q. What if they give me no notice of their intention to start Adoption Leave?
A. Any failure to give proper notice of an intention to start adoption leave will be regarded as a disciplinary offence, leading potentially to disciplinary sanctions for misconduct if appropriate
Q. How do I manage disputes about statutory adoption pay or if I can’t pay it?
A. Call the HMRC helpline - You can call the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) helpline if:
- you and someone else disagree about how much statutory maternity pay they should get, or for how long.
- you cannot pay it, for example because you're insolvent.
Q. What rights do agency workers have?
A. Find out more about employment rights for agency workers by downloading our HR How to Guide on Agency Workers
Q. What must I do when I receive notice of my employee’s intention to take Adoption Leave?
A. Within 28 days of receiving the Employee’s notice of intention to take adoption leave, the Employer will write to the Employee confirming the latest date on which the Employee must return to work after adoption leave.
Q. When is an employee who is adopting protected from discrimination?
A. By law, an employee is protected against discrimination from the start of their adoption leave until they either:
- end maternity leave.
- return to work.
- leave their job.
Q. What time off is an employee entitled to if they adopting?
A. By law the main adopter is entitled to paid time off for up to 5 adoption appointments, the secondary adopter is entitled to take unpaid time off for up to 2 appointments. Some employment contracts may allow for more, or paid, time off for these appointments.
It's important to have a reliable Adoption Leave Policy outlined in your employment handbook. This ensures everyone is aware of how an employees’ adoption leave is dealt with.
Download our more detailed step by step HR How to Guide for more detail on Adoption by subscribing to https://www.hrguide.co.uk/subscribe.php
If our step-by-step HR How to Guide doesn’t give you the support you need, simply call us on our HR Helpline for expert advice.
