Shared Parental Leave (SPL) is often described as 'a year to split between two parents'. That is true for leave. For pay, it is much tighter, and that is where the planning is.
How the pool is built
Nothing is added on top of maternity entitlement. The mother or primary adopter gives up part of the 52 weeks of maternity leave and 39 weeks of maternity pay, and what is given up becomes SPL and Statutory Shared Parental Pay (ShPP). GOV.UK's example: a mother who takes 22 weeks of Maternity Leave and Statutory Maternity Pay can share 30 weeks of SPL and 17 weeks of ShPP with her partner.
What it pays
ShPP is £194.32 a week or 90% of average weekly earnings, whichever is lower. Statutory Maternity Pay is the same, except that the first six weeks are paid at 90% of earnings with no cap. So if you earn well above about £216 a week, SPL weeks pay the flat rate, not a share of your salary.
Some employers pay more than the statutory amount, and the enhancement for SPL is often different from the one for maternity leave. Ask each employer for the SPL policy in writing before you build a plan on it.
A simple way to plan it
- List each parent's monthly take-home pay now, and the statutory and employer-enhanced pay for each possible block of leave.
- Decide how many weeks the household can afford at the flat statutory rate. That number, not the 50 weeks, is usually the real limit.
- Choose between one long block, staggered blocks, or overlapping leave. Blocks separated by work are allowed.
- Check where [nursery start dates and funded hours](nursery-budget-funded-hours-tax-free-childcare) fall, so the leave plan ends when childcare can begin.
- Use the GOV.UK Shared Parental Leave and Pay planning tool to check dates and statutory pay.
Money effects beyond the pay slip
Lower income during leave can change a parent's adjusted net income for the tax year, which matters for the Child Benefit charge and the £100,000 childcare line. It can also affect the tax-year timing of bonuses, pension contributions and RSU vests. Check the whole-year figure, not just the months of leave.
General information, not personal financial or tax advice. Rules and rates checked on GOV.UK on 3 October 2026. Check the official sources and your employer's policy for your own circumstances.
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