Parental leave review is a start — now let’s fix the return-to-work gap

This piece was written by Tim Pemberton, Business Director at ReGenerate.

The recent review by government into parental leave is a welcome first step in addressing a critical area where the UK has been lagging behind. But there’s a risk that it focuses too narrowly on the months after birth, without considering what happens next. Because while leave is important, it’s only part of the story.

For many parents, especially those in lower-paid or shift-based roles, returning to work after leave is the moment things get really hard. Formal childcare support often doesn’t kick in until age three, leaving a gap that is difficult to bridge. As a result, some parents reduce their hours, take on lower-paid roles, or leave work altogether. Others return to work but struggle with stress, sleep deprivation and guilt, which can affect both performance and wellbeing.

This isn’t just a personal challenge. It’s a national one. We know that the early years, particularly the first 1,001 days, are vital for a child’s development. Children from disadvantaged backgrounds start school, on average, five months behind their peers by age five. Supporting parents in this period isn’t just the right thing to do; it’s one of the smartest investments we can make in levelling up life chances.

At ReGenerate, as part of our Early Childhood Development Project, we recently released a paper on how businesses can support working parents. Enhanced leave, particularly bringing paternity leave up to six weeks, is a key part of the solution. One underlooked trend emphasising this need is the rise of caesarean births (~42% of births in England). Partner support for the first six weeks is particularly vital where major surgery has ocurred.

For businesses, lowering stresses on working parents — particularly in this post birth period — can help build long term employee engagement, boost productivity and reduce unplanned absences. Post-leave support is rare. This policy gap is where some of the greatest opportunities lie for businesses to take a proactive role in supporting working parents.

One of the business solutions to meet this gap is ReGenerate’s 80-for-90 policy: giving parents post leave the option to work 80% of their hours for 90% of their pay up until their child turns two. This time capped policy can help with the transition back into work, helping ensure working parents (particularly women) don’t drop out of the workplace.

This approach works best for businesses that have already begun thinking seriously about how to support working parents, and recognise the value in softening the transition back into work. Understanding the specific needs of their workforce — their roles, rhythms and pressures — is important to tailoring support that actually works.

The government has set a clear ambition to increase school readiness to 75%, as well as to boost economic activity. But right now, these agendas are being looked at in silos. A more joined-up approach would see the parental leave review not just as a question of leave duration or pay, but as part of a wider early years system which considers the experience of working parents in the early years and how to encourage more working parents back into the workforce.

We’re encouraging the government to think bigger. To see parental leave not as a one-off policy, but as the first chapter in a longer story. One where parents are supported not just to take time off, but to come back well. Where businesses are equipped to play their part. And where every child has the best chance to thrive, right from the start.