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Neonatal Care Leave
A long-awaited Family Friendly policy that ensures parents in employment can concentrate on their new family without job security worries.
Employment Law
Recruitment Process Temporary Adjustments to Continue
It has always been a requirement under UK law for employers to conduct ‘right-to-work’ checks, to confirm the validity of original documents during the recruitment process.
Stay safe - Keep Well
The Kickstart Scheme
‘Kickstart’ is a £2bn Government initiative launched in response to growing concerns that due to the current pandemic, thousands of young people may miss the opportunity to gain valuable work…
Podcast
Is the GDPR elephant still in the room?
Having received a number of requests for HR guidance in relation to GDPR, we have pulled together a short podcast covering the highlights and providing guidance on areas for consideration….
Statutory Rates
2025 – 2026
| Effective 1st April 2025 |
|---|
The National Minimum Wage
Refer to the HMRC website https://www.gov.uk/guidance/rates-and-thresholds-for-employers-2025-to-2026 for information on National Insurance Contribution threshold changes for 2025-2026 |
| Effective 6th April 2025 |
|
Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) / Statutory Adoption Pay (SAP)
Weekly Rate: £187.18
First 6 weeks @ 90% of employee’s average weekly earnings (before tax and no maximum), calculated from the 8-week period up to and including the Qualifying Week (maternity) or date the child placed for adoption; weeks 7-39 at statutory rate or 90% or average weekly earnings (before tax), if lower; weeks 40-52 unpaid. |
|
Statutory Shared Parental Pay (ShPP)
Weekly Rate: £187.18
Statutory rate or 90% of employee’s weekly earnings if this is lower. |
|
Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay (SPBP)
Weekly Rate: £187.18
Statutory rate or 90% of employee’s weekly earnings if this is lower. |
|
Statutory Paternity Pay (SPP)
Weekly Rate: £187.18
Employees can take either 1 or 2 weeks leave. Statutory rate or 90% of employee’s weekly earnings if this is lower. |
|
Statutory Neonatal Care Pay (SNCP)
Weekly Rate: £187.18
Neonatal Care Leave applies to parents of babies admitted to neonatal care up to 28 days old and their hospital stay is 7 full days or longer. Leave entitlement is up to 12 weeks. Statutory rate or 90% of employee’s weekly earnings if this is lower, in addition to any other statutory leave entitlement e.g. maternity and paternity leave. |
| Effective 6th April 2024 |
|
Statutory Sick Pay Weekly Rate £118.75 Lower Earnings Limit (per week) £123.00 |
Compensation Limits & Fines
2025 – 2026
| Statutory Guarantee Pay Limit |
|---|
| £39.00 per day |
| Limit on week’s pay for calculating Redundancy pay |
| £719.00 |
| Maximum basic award for certain Unfair Dismissals (including Health & Safety) |
| £8,793 |
| Maximum Compensatory Award for Unfair Dismissal |
| £118,223 (or a year's gross pay whichever is lower) |
| Additional Award for Unfair Dismissal where Employer does not comply with a Re-instatement or Re-engagement Order |
| £36,400 (In addition to the basic award of between 26 and 52 weeks’ pay, subject to statutory limits) |
| Penalties for Employing Illegal Workers |
| If found guilty of employing someone known not to have, or there was ‘reasonable cause to believe’ they did not have, the right to work in the UK, this could result in a 5-year jail sentence and an unlimited fine. Employers can also be penalised if the correct checks were not undertaken, or not undertaken properly. In such cases a ‘referral notice’ may be served to advise the case is being considered and a civil penalty (fine) of up to £60,000 may be issued for each illegal worker. |
| Compensation Award for failure to have a written tips policy, or failure to allocate tips fairly. |
| £5,315 |
Source: CIPD HR-inform
Start As You Mean To Go On
We all work better and smarter when we know what is expected of us. Ensure you get your employment relationship off to a positive and engaging start from day one. Please contact us if you’d like to discuss employee handbooks for your organisation.
