Rachel Grocott, CEO of Pregnant Then Screwed, argues for urgent reform of the UK parental leave system, highlighting its inadequacies and outdated nature
Parental leave in the UK is an embarrassment; it’s underfunded, unequal, and old-fashioned, and it is hurting families across the UK. This isn’t something where a quick fix will make a difference; it needs bold, unapologetic reform. The system needs to change to stop putting mothers at the centre of childcare and to start allowing fathers and partners to have a bigger role.
Insufficient support for new parents
The majority of UK mums-to-be rely on Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP), which is just 43% of the national living wage. This barely covers the beginnings of recovery from birth, let alone time to come to terms with a huge upheaval in life. To add to that, dads and non-birthing partners are locked out of providing support, as most are only given two weeks of paternity leave. Many can’t afford to take the full two weeks, and self-employed partners are not entitled to any leave or pay at all. For low-income parents, this can have a significant impact on their early parenting years, pushing some of the most vulnerable into poverty and forcing them to go back to work earlier than they’d like.
The motherhood penalty is very real and experienced by women, not just when they take time out to have a baby, but for years after. ONS data shows that mothers lose £65,000 in earnings within five years of having a child. This isn’t just down to poor maternity pay, but also to the effects of being away from the office during maternity and needing job flexibility to juggle childcare responsibilities, which can make careers stagnate. Caring responsibilities need to be more equal, but that starts with improving the paternity leave offer.
UK paternity leave is the worst in Europe
Paternity leave in the UK is the worst in Europe. Less than 10% of fathers take more than two weeks of paternity leave, and 40% do not take it at all, compared to Sweden, where paternity leave can be as high as 85%. This is problematic for two key reasons. Firstly, from a practical perspective, mums are often still extremely vulnerable after two weeks and are recovering both physically and mentally. The recommended physical recovery time for a c-section is six weeks, leaving mums recovering alone for around two-thirds of that. The number of births delivered by c-section is on the rise; births delivered by c-section are up by 35% over the last five years, with 42% of all babies delivered this way. That leaves almost half of all new mums facing weeks of recovery alone. We know that today’s dads and partners want to be part of this vital time for mums, babies, and partners, but instead they’re forced to go back to work and watch from the sidelines.
Secondly, returning early also means the expected roles of mums and dads in family life are unequal from the outset, with mums taking on more of the childcare and household roles, as they’re the ones in a position to take more time away from work. Paternity leave isn’t just about childcare; it’s about managing the household, taking responsibility for chores, and sharing the mental load. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development says that women spend, on average, two hours a week more than men on household chores. Paternity leave gives everyone the opportunity to do this work and see the level of effort, both mental and physical, that goes into caring for a baby while simultaneously making a household tick over and life work. By expecting partners to return to work after two weeks, we’re setting a standard where women are expected to do the lion’s share of housework and childcare from early in their parenting journey. It also means many men and partners never experience the reality of work that goes into family life. Unless both parties have an understanding of what that entails, it’s difficult, if not impossible, to create an equally balanced relationship.
We need to address systemic challenges
While shared parental leave is useful, its impact is limited, as the gender pay gap means it’s highly unlikely that men will take paternity leave when they are most likely to have the highest income. Unfortunately, we still live in a culture where sharing parental responsibility is not considered the norm. These attitudes are also prevalent in the workplace; a man is often overtly challenged if he asks for more than two weeks of paternity leave, since it’s not ‘normal’. Unless we make the whole system easier and financially fairer, this won’t change, and women will continue to be forced into the role of the primary caregiver.
Ultimately, we’re operating a system that is decades out of date, based on outdated gender stereotypes, and harmful to both parents. Dads and partners need and want a much bigger role, but are financially tied to returning to the workplace; mums need and want more support. We often hear that mums are forced to return to work sooner or later than they would choose, purely to make ends meet – rather than what makes sense for them, their babies, and their careers. The motherhood penalty begins with unequal leave, and we need to confront that reality to progress. We don’t need a road map; we need a reckoning. A new system must be created from scratch: one that is inclusive of all families, financially secure for both parents, and designed to support recovery and bonding, so that mums, parents, and families can all have a fairer, better start in life.
