Police Negotiating Board for Scotland: circular 2025-08 - family friendly provisions

Memorandum

The Official and Staff Sides of the PNBS have reached agreement on the following Family Friendly provisions.

• To enhance the statutory neonatal care leave and pay and this will:
  • be available to parents of babies born on or after 6 April 2025 at the occupational (full) pay rate.
  • provide for a minimum of one week and maximum of 12 weeks’ occupational (full) pay and leave dependent on how long the baby remains in neonatal care.
  • relate to babies who receive neonatal care for at least seven consecutive days within the first 28 days of life. Neonatal care covers medical care both in hospital or elsewhere if it follows a period in hospital, and involves ongoing monitoring from healthcare professionals, as well as palliative and end-of-life care.
  • be in addition to any other leave they may be entitled to including adoption, maternity, adoption/maternity support and shared parental leave. For mothers/primary adopters this will be taken after they have completed adoption/maternity leave.
  • be a day one right for all officers who join the Police Service of Scotland.
• To provide an extension of the two weeks parental bereavement leave to apply to cover losses of up to 24 weeks pregnant. This provision will be available to both parents as is the case for current parental bereavement leave provisions. This will include a loss as a result of a miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy, molar pregnancy or termination, or an unsuccessful attempt at in vitro fertilisation as a result of embryo transfer loss (in line with eligibility considerations currently taking place with regards to the Employment Rights Bill). This will be a day one right for all officers who join the Police Service of Scotland.