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RESOLVED:

1.      That this Council
recognises the role that all parents play in ensuring that children
can grow up in a safe, secure and loving
environment so that they can succeed in life.

2.      That this Council notes
the:

a)           
leading role we have played as an authority in
pioneering formal parental leave for councillors as new
parents;

b)           
need for local government to ensure it offers the
best employment practices to attract and retain the best officers
to deliver the best services for local
residents; and

c)            
leadership role local authorities play in leading by
example in employment practices for other public sector and private
businesses.

3.      That this Council further
notes that:

a)           
the parental leave rights in the United Kingdom lag
behind those in other comparable European and highly-developed economies; and

b)           
new fathers and second parents are entitled to two
weeks paid parental leave at the Statutory Paternity Pay (SPP)
level of £187.18 a week.

4.      That this Council believes
that:

a)           
new fathers and second parents should be able to
take time off work when their new baby is born;

b)           
children and parents would strongly benefit by
ensuring early bonding;

c)            
new fathers or second parents should not need to
worry about choosing between bonding with their new child and
financial security; and

d)           
employers and businesses benefit from enhanced
employment rights through higher productivity, better staff
retention and recruitment.

5.      That this Council
therefore:

a)           
supports “Joy of Six,” campaign by The
Fatherhood Institute, The Dad Shift, Pregnant then Screwed, trade
unions and others for enhanced paternity/second parent employment
rights;

b)           
supports the right to two weeks full paid
paternity/second parent leave and a further flexible four weeks
paid parental leave, at or near full pay, which can be taken at any
time during the first year of a child’s life; and

c)            
highlights that a growing number of private sector
businesses already offer this flexibility, with some offering a
full 52 weeks paternity/second parent
leave at full or marginally reduced pay.

6.      That this Council agrees
to ask the Executive to liaise with the Chief Executive
to:

a)           
write to the Deputy Prime Minster to request that
the aims of the “Joy of Six” campaign are considered as
amendments to the UK Employment Rights Bill;

b)           
write to South East
Employers and the LGA to highlight the campaign and ask them to
support it as an addition to the Green Book and other local
government employment terms and conditions; and

c)            
request that the Director of Law and Governance
prepare a note on the possible application of the recent
announcement by government of upcoming guidance that will allow
proxy and remote voting for local authority meetings in relation to
the Parental Leave for Councillors policy.