In April 2025, new legislation introduced the right to Neonatal Care Leave, offering parents up to 12 weeks of leave if their baby is admitted to hospital for specialist care within the first 28 days after birth.
The leave can be taken in addition to maternity, paternity, or adoption leave, and is available to parents with at least 26 weeks’ continuous service, where the baby has required at least seven continuous days of hospital care. However, statutory neonatal pay is currently set at £184.03 per week (2025/26 rate), which is a substantial drop in income for any officer or staff member at a time of extreme emotional pressure.
The Federation has submitted a formal proposal to the Joint Consultation Committee (JCC) asking the Constabulary to enhance this leave to full occupational pay, in line with other progressive family leave enhancements already in place at CNC.
Why this matters
We fully understand the operational and financial pressures facing the organisation, but this proposal is about more than cost; it’s about compassion, fairness, and continuity in how we support families across the service.
The CNC already goes beyond statutory minimums in several key areas:
Maternity and adoption leave: enhanced to 26 weeks at full pay
Paternity leave: increased to 3 weeks at full pay
Carers leave: 5 paid days per year
Support for fertility treatment and pregnancy loss
With the introduction of statutory neonatal care leave, a clear gap has emerged. Officers and staff facing the difficult situation of having a newborn in intensive care need reassurance that their organisation will stand behind them, both financially and emotionally, so they can focus on what matters most.
Representing officers - supporting the workforce
Although the Federation has submitted this proposal on behalf of officers, we’ve made it clear that the change would benefit both officers and staff, as family leave policies apply equally across the workforce.
Enhancing neonatal care leave would close the final gap in a strong, progressive suite of policies and reflect the Constabulary’s continued commitment to supporting its people through every stage of life and service.
By making this change, CNC has the opportunity to set the standard across UK policing, showing what real, modern support for officers and staff looks like in practice.