Parents – summer holidays are covered! Voted THE BEST Holiday Club in the entire region 2019! All our team are qualified teachers or sports coaches. Total Sports teach in Primary Schools all year round – You are in experienced hands who know how to look after you children and have lots of fun. Childcare Vouchers accepted. Venues in York, Harrogate & Knaresborough. We get FULL for a reason! From 8.15am – 5.30pm ENERGY CLUB at all venues is described as a children’s favourite. 5 activities per day from Team Games, Arts and Crafts, Treasure Hunts, Water Pistol Wednesday, Ice Cream Thursday and Dodgeball, to name but a few. It’s a firm favourite. Add into this the fact that they bring extra WOW equipment which goes in between venues throughout Summer too. This includes THE BEAST (A 40 foot assault course), a Bouncy Castle, Scooters and a Speed Cage. FOOTBALL CAMP – with their excellent coaches, fun attitude and a variety of games, challenges and competitions – it continues to be popular. DANCE CLUB – Dance is loved by so many children and runs at the Manor CE site only this Summer. With their super star dance teachers running inclusive sessions, it is a popular choice. They also allow children to alternate between camps during the day if they want – so if there is something on or they want to go on the scooters or play football – they can! Clubs run all Summer in York (Huntington Primary, Manor CE, Archbishop’s Secondary) Knaresborough (King James’s Secondary) & Harrogate (Rossett Sports Centre). Childcare Vouchers are accepted too, which is a great saving for parents. Clubs are really well priced, starting at £19 per day and for busy parents you can drop off from 8.15am and pick up until 5.30pm. As you can imagine, with all this to offer and being voted the best holiday club around – they get booked up each summer. Do have a look at their website and make your online booking once you have seen what they have to offer. For children aged 5 to 12. Ps. Did we mention they even have Exotic Animal visits as part of the day in the first week? www.totalsportslimited.co.uk
What’s in it for us? A summary of Shared Parental Leave By Georgina Thomas
In 2015, parents and forward-thinking employers embraced the new Shared Parental Leave (“SPL”) employee rights regime in the UK. Why, then, four years down the line is uptake of SPL so low?
What is SPL?
It is a legal right that, if you are eligible, gives you the option to share up to 50 weeks off work with your partner (either consecutively, concurrently or a mix of both) following the birth of your child. Yet less than 2% of those eligible in 2018 used SPL according to recent surveys.
Why is this?
Barriers exist that make these employee rights inaccessible to many. Employers often don’t understand SPL and the benefits that it offers: a balanced organisation with happier staff equals greater staff retention, an attractive prospect for potential candidates – a wider pool to select from and better chance to get the right fit! So, they often don’t communicate it or promote it. Also, there is no obligation on employers to pay enhanced pay during SPL – even where they enhance maternity pay. You therefore risk being worse off, financially, if you give up enhanced maternity pay for your partner to take over on less money! This is currently being challenged in the courts but, presently, still stands and will deter many. familiesonline.co.uk
SPL also requires you to give up some of your maternity leave to enable your partner to take it as SPL. This can be daunting in the months following childbirth, particularly when postnatal complications come into play.
are handled correctly – failing to do so can lead to successful claims. We have seen this firsthand!
Studies show many benefits to improving work-life balance and empowering co-parents to be a bigger part of their childrens’ lives.
If this affects you or you would like further information, please call a member of the team.
Why should employers promote SPL?
A positive home life is proven to have a positive impact on satisfaction and performance in the workplace - a good thing for employers too!
As SPL becomes more widely accepted, and staff are supported to access it, the benefits will be tangible for employers and employees alike.
Call us for a free telephone consultation on: 01904 360 295. Email Georgina at: georgina@bridgeehr.co.uk
SPL also encourages retention of female staff. You can be held back professionally on the presumption that you will take time out to have a family and taking time off can impact your career progression. With SPL, the risk of this is equal for men, leading to balance and greater retention of the female workforce (very topical at a time when there is so much focus on the gender pay gap). Again, good for employers too! Several well-known companies are currently publicly promoting their family friendly policies, including enhanced rights for staff who take SPL. This should encourage employers to promote SPL in their workplaces, to understand it, communicate it, normalise it and support staff to access and use it.
In a nutshell….
If you are eligible, you have a right to SPL and so systems and policies must be in place in the workplace so requests Families North Yorkshire 5