The Children and Families Act has received royal assent and become law, bringing into force numerous changes to adoption, maternity and paternity rights.
The ‘significantly improved’ Act has been welcomed by children’s directors, but they have added that more work may be required in order to ensure that it offers the right support to workers.
The Act contains measures including the extension of the right to request flexible working to all employees – this will take effect on 30 June 2014 – and the right for partners of pregnant women to take time off work in order to attend antenatal appointments.
Other changes related to the rights for prospective adoptive parents and the introduction of entitlements to adoption leave, the removal of the statutory procedure for considering flexible working requests and shared parental leave and pay. The latter is tipped to apply to babies who are born after 5 April 2015.
Employment Relations Minister, Jenny Willott, said: “We want these reforms to bring about a culture change in Britain’s workplaces, allowing everyone to better balance work with their personal life in the way that works for them.”
Ms Willott also said that the changes would be good news for business as they would help to create a more motivated workforce.
“Employers will be able to attract and retain women – from the boardroom to the shop floor – and prevent them from dropping out of the world of work once they start a family. Flexible working will also help widen the pool of talent in the labour market, helping to drive growth”, she added.