New legal rights for others to accompany an expectant mother to ante-natal appointments

Did you know that from 1 October 2014, an expectant father or the partner of a pregnant woman will be entitled to take unpaid time off work to accompany the woman to ante-natal appointments? Are you aware of new guidance released by BIS? 

October introduces new legal rights for fathers and partners to take unpaid time off to accompany a woman to ante-natal appointments. ‘Partner’ includes the spouse or civil partner of the pregnant woman and a person (of either sex) in a long-term relationship with her. The new legislation is designed to achieve the Government’s aim of encouraging greater involvement from both parents from the earliest stages of pregnancy.

The Department of Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) has published a seven page guide, ‘Time off to accompany a pregnant woman to ante-natal appointments: employer guide’ which provides a summary of the new legal right and then sets out guidance for employers under 13 ‘frequently asked questions’, including:

• Who can take the unpaid time off?
• Is there a qualifying requirement?
• How much time can the person accompanying the expectant mother take off?
• What happens if time off is refused?

The guide explains who qualifies for these new rights and explains that the right is to time off on up to two occasions for a maximum of 6.5 hours each. Pregnant women normally attend around 10 antenatal appointments and it is open to employers to be more generous in how much time off they give to employees.

You can download the guidance here