Paid paternity and adoption leave for police officers in England and Wales is set to double, increasing from one week to two across all forces. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has implemented this change, bringing fathers' leave in line with mothers'.
Previously, only a quarter of forces offered two weeks of full pay, with others providing one week on full pay and a second week on statutory pay. This led to only 40% of officers in the latter group taking the second week, compared to 88% in forces offering two weeks of full pay.
Policing Minister Sarah Jones stated that the expansion recognises the importance of family life and better supports new fathers. The government is now facing calls to improve paternity leave across the wider public sector.