Neonatal Care Leave and pay: A new right
As of 6 April 2025, parents of babies in receipt of neonatal care for seven days or more are now entitled to a new form of leave under the Neonatal Care (Leave and Pay) Act 2023.
Around 40,000 babies spend over one week in neonatal care each year, and the government has estimated that approximately 60,000 parents may benefit from this new right. The aim of the new right is for parents to spend time with their baby while they are receiving medical care, without that eating into their maternity, paternity or shared parental leave.
Employees can benefit from Neonatal Care Leave (NCL) from day one of their employment. At the birth of the baby, which must be on or after 6 April 2025, the employee must be either:
The baby's parents or intended parents (in a surrogacy situation)
Partner to the baby’s mother (who are unrelated and living with them in an enduring family relationship) with the expectation they will have responsibility for raising the child
If adopting, similar principles apply.
There are three categories of what medical care will count as neonatal care.
1. Medical care received in a hospital
2. Medical care received in any other place following discharge from hospital (provided that the care is under the direction of a consultant and includes ongoing monitoring by / visits from healthcare professionals arranged by that hospital)
3. Palliative or end of life care
Neonatal care must have taken place within the first 28 days of birth and must continue for at least 7 consecutive days.
Eligible employees are entitled to take one week leave for each week that their baby receives neonatal care without interruption. This is capped at a maximum of 12 weeks leave.
NCL cannot be claimed twice by the same employee in respect of multiple births where the babies are receiving care at the same time in the case of twins for example. The maximum amount of leave for that employee would remain 12 weeks.
NCL can be taken on top of any other leave the employee may be entitled to (for example maternity or paternity leave) and it must be taken within 68 weeks of the baby’s birth (or placement for adoption cases). It is expected that employees will tag NCL onto the end of their family leave, given that they will likely be on some other form of family leave at the time their baby is in neonatal care, but it can be taken earlier.
The right to receive statutory neonatal care pay requires 26 weeks of service and earnings on average of at least £123 a week. This mirrors the existing entitlement to statutory maternity and shared parental leave pay.
Contact Nicola to discuss this further.
