Academic Policy & Governance

Appendix A – Postgraduate Research Students Additional Guidance

This policy covers all PGR Students with parental responsibilities, including non-birthing partners. All PGR students are entitled to take parental leave under this policy as set out below:

1. Any student wishing to take a period of parental leave must contact their College Graduate School office as soon as possible to discuss leave options and make arrangements / apply for the period of leave. Supervisory teams should also be consulted so that the period of leave has minimal impact on the student’s work and so that their return to work is handled sensitively.

2. Employer, Visa or Funder terms and conditions normally overrule University Policy in terms of leave allowances and available funding. By accepting a studentship orVisa, the student is agreeing to the specific terms and conditions of the funder, employer or UKVI which may differ from the entitlements in points 3-5.

3. Maternity/Adoption: 2 weeks min/12 month max

3.1  Any student who has given birth must not return to University within two weeks of giving birth for health and safety reasons.

3.2  Students requiring a Visa to study in the UK must check the terms of their Visa closely and comply with any restrictions or requirements. Students should consult with the International Student Support Team and/or UKVI. If clarification is needed on the terms of the Visa, this should be sought immediately from the UKVI.

Students may take a maximum of 52 weeks of maternity/adoption leave. If you are funded, please consult your funding terms and conditions for more information. University scholarship holders are treated in line with UKRI guidance, e.g. the first 26 weeks at full pay, 13 weeks at the rate of statutory maternity pay and 13 weeks unpaid.

3.3 The submission deadline of the student will be adjusted in line with the amount of any maternity or adoption leave taken. If the student is in receipt of funding (e.g. UKRI studentship, University or College scholarships), the funding end date will also be adjusted in line with the funder’s terms and conditions. Not all funders provide financial support to cover maternity/adoption leave, or multiple periods of maternity/adoption leave so do check your terms and conditions carefully.

3.4  If no funding exists for parental leave within the funder or employer terms and conditions, or the student is self-funded, the student will receive no funding from the University during the period of parental leave. Students should contact their Graduate School and the SRC Advice Centre to enquire if other funds are available to them (e.g. hardship funds).

3.5  Should a student withdraw from their studies after a period of paid parental leave, any stipend paid during that period would normally be recovered by the University. If a student returns for three months or less, payments may be recovered on a sliding scale.

4. Ordinary Parental Leave

Partners are entitled to up to 10 days paid Ordinary Parental Leave on full stipend if they are currently in receipt of a stipend and their funder permits this. Ordinary Parental Leave cannot normally start before the birth or adoption and must end within 56 days of the birth or adoption. A student’s final submission date will be adjusted to account for this period of leave, effectively extending their funding for the same period. Any further leave may be taken as unpaid parental leave as a suspension of studies.

5. Unpaid Parental Leave

Partners may also take an extended period of unpaid parental leave, up to a maximum of 50 weeks, taking into account any periods of ‘ordinary parental leave’, with their studentship extended accordingly. This will be recorded as a suspension of studies. Unpaid parental leave must be completed within 12 months of the birth of the child. This leave may be taken in up to three blocks of leave or all at once.

6. Shared Parental Leave

6.1  Shared parental leave is not an additional entitlement to leave. Instead, it enables leave to be shared between parents. For shared parental leave, the student must be sharing the care of their child during the year following the birth or adoption of their child and be one of the following:

• the birth parent;
• the primary adopter;
• the spouse, civil partner, or partner of the birth parent / primary adopter.

6.2  As with any period of leave, students should discuss their plans with their supervisory team and consult their Graduate School for appropriate guidance and to make any necessary arrangements.

6.3  Applications for shared parental leave should normally be made at least eight weeks before the leave is requested to begin to allow sufficient time for review and administration of payments. 

6.4  Students should apply to their Graduate School through normal channels for parental leave, making clear that they are applying for shared parental leave, confirming their eligibility and that of their partner for shared parental leave, and providing the name and contact details of their partner’s employer or confirmation of their partner’s self-employed status.  The University will act on this information in good faith but where any information has proved to be misleading the University reserves the right to recoup any payments made incorrectly or through the provision of erroneous information.

6.5  In order to be eligible for shared parental leave, the student must be in receipt of a University-funded studentship or be in receipt of funding that offers provision for shared parental leave at the expected time of the birth of the child or adoption and one of the following must be the case:

• Both parents or adopters are University-funded students or are students whose funding allows shared parental leave to be taken. In this case, with the consent of both students, the University will permit the leave to be shared and the normal stipend (up to 26 weeks or pro-rata) to be shared in the period following the birth of the child. The periods of leave do not have to be consecutive (each parent could take shorter periods or could take the leave at the same time); or
• One parent or adopter is a University-funded student or a student whose funding allows shared parental leave to be taken, and the other is employed and entitled to shared parental leave. If the eligible birth parent or adopter chooses to curtail their maternity or adoption leave, this may be shared by the partner. If the eligible birth parent chooses to curtail their maternity or adoption pay, the partner may be entitled to a stipend at the rate usually provided to them by the University up to a maximum of 26 weeks (or pro-rata); or
• One parent is a University-funded PGR or a student whose funding allows shared parental leave to be taken, the other is self-employed and entitled to maternity allowance. If the eligible birth parent chooses to curtail their maternity leave, this may be shared by the partner. If the eligible birth parent chooses to curtail their maternity allowance, the partner may be entitled to a stipend at the rate usually provided by the University for up to a maximum of 26 weeks (or pro-rata).