---
title: Fathers Want Six Weeks of Paternity Leave at 90% Pay as the Government's Review Nears Its End
description: The UK parental leave review is due to end in December. Campaigners want six weeks of paternity leave at 90% pay, with self-employed dads included.
author: Dr Marina Nani (Editor-in-Chief)
date: 2026-11-05T10:00:00.050Z
updated: 2026-11-05T19:34:23.819Z
canonical: https://richdadmagazine.com/article/paternity-leave-review-six-weeks
image: https://cdn.nanimediahouse.com/pexels-2815694.webp
categories: Fatherhood, Money & Legacy
content_type: Analysis
region: United Kingdom
publication: Rich Dad Magazine
schema_type: Article
---

The [two weeks of statutory paternity leave](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/generation-new-era-study-parents-guide) you can take today were introduced in 2003, and the length has not changed since. Ministers have until the end of December to finish their review of how new parents are paid and given time off, and campaigners, MPs and economists have all put the same figure in front of it: six weeks, paid at 90% of your salary.

## Paternity Leave and Pay in the UK Today

Since 6th April 2026, paternity leave has been yours from day one in a new job, for a week or a fortnight. The pay rules did not move with it. [Statutory Paternity Pay](https://www.gov.uk/paternity-pay-leave) pays the lower of £194.32 and 90% of what you usually earn each week, and only once you have worked for the same employer for 26 weeks. A full fortnight on the statutory rate brings in £388.64.

Self-employed fathers receive nothing today. The Budget on 28th October promised them two weeks at up to £194 a week from April 2029, which we set out in [our guide to the new allowance](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/self-employed-paternity-pay-2029).

## The Parental Leave and Pay Review

The review opened on 1st July 2025 and was set to run for 18 months, to 31st December 2026. It covers every entitlement, from maternity, paternity and shared parental leave to adoption, neonatal and bereavement leave, along with parents who qualify for none of them, such as the self-employed. The government said at the outset that it would look at both the length and the pay of paternity leave.

The take-up figures cited at its launch show the scale of the gap. 59% of fathers took paternity leave, for an average of 1.7 weeks, and 4% took shared parental leave.

Pressure on the government has grown since. In June 2025, a committee of MPs recommended six weeks off for new fathers at 80% of earnings. In September 2026, 105 MPs wrote to the Prime Minister urging an increase in statutory paternity leave. A parliamentary petition asking for at least 12 weeks of paid leave for fathers closed on 20th September 2026. After the Budget, Labour MP Maya Ellis, who campaigned for the self-employed allowance, said she would keep pushing for a more ambitious system.

## The Dad Shift Campaign for Longer, Better-Paid Leave

The Dad Shift, a campaign group run by fathers, is calling for at least six weeks of paternity leave paid at 90% of salary, with self-employed fathers covered. The Fatherhood Institute and the charity Pregnant Then Screwed ask for the same six weeks at 90%.

The group has made its case in public. In June 2025, fathers joined a DadStrike outside government offices in London and Edinburgh. In October 2025, with the men's health charity Movember, they left yellow notices styled as parking fines on prams, nappies and formula tins at more than 50 locations.

The Joseph Rowntree Foundation has costed the idea. It modelled six weeks at 90% of earnings, capped at £1,200 a week, and estimated a net gain to the economy of £2.68 billion a year once the scheme is established, mostly from mothers returning to work sooner or working more hours.

## What Statutory Paternity Pay Costs Fathers

The Dad Shift calculates that two weeks on statutory pay costs the average father more than £1,000 in lost earnings, and that a third of fathers take no leave at all. Polling for The Dad Shift and Movember found that 61% of new fathers said financial pressure had affected their mental health and 51% said it had affected their physical health. 57% said money worries had influenced their decision not to have more children.

Statutory paternity pay rose 23% in five years, while the price of formula milk rose by more than 25% in half that time. Movember is calling for paternity leave to be placed at the centre of the government's men's health strategy.

## Paternity Leave for Self-Employed Dads

The two weeks promised for 2029 fall short of every proposal in front of the review. A [March 2026 policy brief from the University of Bath](https://www.bath.ac.uk/announcements/paternity-allowance-six-weeks-for-selfemployed-and-worker-dads-could-create-3-billion-in-benefits/) proposed a six-week Paternity Allowance for self-employed, contract and gig-economy fathers, paid at the statutory rate and taken in weekly blocks across the baby's first year. About 131,000 fathers would qualify each year. The brief put the net benefit to the country at nearly £3 billion a year, against a cost to government of £60 million. Under current rules, around 22% of new fathers receive no paternity pay.

## How Well-Paid Leave Changes Family Life

A [review of 33 studies published in September](https://www.kcl.ac.uk/news/six-weeks-paid-leave-for-fathers-could-boost-the-economy-and-reduce-relationship-breakdowns) found that well-paid leave reserved for fathers goes with fewer relationship breakdowns after a birth. Fathers who took it did more childcare and housework, in some families for several years. When Iceland added leave reserved for fathers, couple separations fell by 12 percentage points. In the UK, fewer breakdowns could save up to £599 million a year.

The level of pay sets who takes the leave. After Quebec reformed its scheme in 2006, the share of fathers taking leave rose from 21% to 74%. In California, which pays new parents through a state bonding leave programme, men now make up about half of applicants. Rich Woman has looked at [how the gap between mothers and fathers plays out worldwide](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/mothers-paid-leave-eight-times-fathers).

## What You Can Do Before the Review Reports

- **Check your employer's policy now.** More than half of fathers who take paternity leave receive full pay from their employer, well above the statutory rate. Ask HR what your company pays, and for how long, before the due date.
- **Give notice early.** Paternity leave is a day-one right, but you still need to tell your employer in writing. The notice rules are on gov.uk.
- **Plan your own cover if you work for yourself.** The self-employed allowance does not start until April 2029, so budget for the time off as if it does not exist yet.
- **Tell your MP what you think.** MPs pushed the self-employed allowance into the Budget, and the review is due to report within weeks.

## FAQ

**Q: How long do fathers get paid paternity leave in the UK?**
Employed fathers and partners in the UK are entitled to a week or a fortnight of statutory paternity leave as soon as they start a job. Statutory Paternity Pay is the lower of £194.32 per week and 90% of your usual weekly pay. The pay only applies once you have been with your employer for 26 weeks and earn £129 a week or more on average. Many employers pay more than the statutory rate.

**Q: How long will paternity leave be in the UK in 2026?**
Statutory paternity leave in the UK is two weeks in 2026. Since 6th April 2026 it has been a day-one right for employees, although the pay still requires 26 weeks of service. A government review of leave and pay for new parents runs until the end of 2026 and could recommend longer or better-paid leave. Self-employed fathers are due to receive two weeks of paid support from April 2029.

**Q: Why is UK paternity leave so short?**
Statutory paternity leave was introduced in 2003 at two weeks and has not been extended since. The UK system was built around mothers taking most of the leave, with fathers given a short period at a flat rate of pay. Shared parental leave, introduced in 2015, lets parents split leave, but few fathers use it, as the pay is low compared with most salaries.