Mills & Reeve enhance family forming benefits
Leading national law firm Mills & Reeve to extend family pay from 1 June 2024
The firm is enhancing their family forming policies, which include adoption & surrogacy, maternity and shared parental leave, where those eligible will receive full pay of up to 26 weeks. In addition, paternity leave is also increasing to four weeks full pay.
Maternity / adoption & surrogacy / shared parental leave and pay
Eligible employees can receive up to 26 weeks’ full pay.
Paternity leave and pay
Eligible employees can take up to four weeks’ leave at full pay, which can be taken within a 12-month period. In addition, paid time is available to attend adoption or antenatal appointments.
The firm already offers further support in relation to family forming, including:
Family mentors
Family mentors support those commencing their family leave period through to those starting their return-to-work transition. The challenges of taking a significant period of leave and then balancing a career with a family is a learning curve. Mills & Reeve is keen to support our employees on this journey with support from those who have previously been through the experience and come out the other side.
Pregnancy loss
All employees affected by an early pregnancy loss, before 24 weeks, including partners and those in a surrogacy arrangement, are entitled to up to two weeks’ leave at full pay, regardless of length of service.
Family forming leave
All employees, regardless of length of service, are eligible to use up to a week’s paid leave for those undergoing fertility treatment.
These enhancements follow Mills & Reeve being accredited as a real Living Wage Employer by the Living Wage Foundation.
Sandy Boyle, director of HR at Mills & Reeve, said: “The enhancements to our key policies reflect our commitment toour employee’s wellbeing. All employees welcoming new additions to their family should be able to take a period of leave with full pay to allow them to be there to support their family as needed without financial concerns.
“We also believe that supporting our employees at a time when this is most needed can enrich employee wellbeing while fostering an inclusive and diverse culture.”
For further information contact:
Sophie Beedell, Communications Executive
sophie.beedell@mills-reeve.com
01223 222315
Warning: Undefined array key "author_person" in /home/b4business/public_html/wp-content/themes/b4-2020/functions.php on line 121
Warning: Trying to access array offset on value of type null in /home/b4business/public_html/wp-content/themes/b4-2020/functions.php on line 121
More in Solicitors
The Renters’ Rights Act comes into force this Friday, 1 May...
The Renters’ Rights Act, which is designed to give residential tenants better protection, comes into force on Friday and applies to both existing and new tenancies. The new regulations do not currently apply to social housing or lodgers. The Act is being implemented in phases. The main changes on Friday will be: • All assured […]
Freeths achieves Stonewall Proud Employer ‘Champion’ status marking commitment to LGBTQ+...
Leading law firm Freeths has been awarded ‘Champion’ status in Stonewall’s Proud Employers accreditation, a recognition reserved for organisations demonstrating embedded, effective and continuously improving LGBTQ+ inclusion.
Devolution and Local Government Reform in Oxfordshire and beyond
Our final OBS2026 Impact Session focused on the future governance of Oxfordshire, bringing together business leaders, council officials and policymakers to explore opportunities for regional growth and development.
From this author
Mills & Reeve announces sponsorship of inaugural Ox Tech Week
Mills & Reeve has announced its sponsorship of the inaugural Ox Tech Week, taking place from 26 to 29 May, supporting a landmark event that will shine a spotlight on Oxford’s world leading innovation ecosystem.
End of 2025: Business reflections from Mills & Reeve
As we wrap up 2025, it’s a good moment to pause and reflect on what’s been an eventful year for Oxfordshire and to look ahead at what’s on the horizon for 2026.
Innovation gap opening due to varying AI adoption – Mills &...
An innovation and governance gap is opening up between businesses that realise the potential of GenAI and those that see its impact as limited, our new report has found.
According to The Critical AI Window, organisations that don’t find ways to capitalise on the potential of AI to drive innovation and growth run the risk of being left behind. As a result, competitive edge is at risk.
Our report shows that less than a third of businesses (31%) are using GenAI, with only one-fifth (22%) seeing it as high value.
Paul Knight, partner at Mills & Reeve said: “There is a clear divide amongst businesses – between those that have bought into AI and are building systems and processes around it, and those that are still unsure of its impact beyond mid- to low-value tasks, such as reducing administration and improving efficiencies and productivity.
“This divide is opening up an innovation and governance gap, as early innovators seize on the opportunities that AI presents. While our research shows that the number of businesses using GenAI is likely to rise to 72% by 2027, the lag in performance between then and now could become insurmountable.”
The report highlights the biggest concerns felt by businesses over AI adoption. The majority (90%) are concerned about inaccuracy, more than eight in ten are worried about safety risks (85%), such as cyber attacks, with the impact on future employment also a cause for concern. However, despite 83% of respondents stating that are worried about regulatory compliance, only 31% of businesses have a risk mitigation strategy in place.
Paul added: “The explosion of GenAI has seen a raft of regulations introduced across the world, with more likely, and all of them subject to change as AI understanding develops. In the UK, the regulation of AI relies on existing legal frameworks such as intellectual property, data protection and contract law, highlighting the growing need for these frameworks to be adapted to address the novel risks and complexities introduced by AI technologies. All this suggests that there will be no steady state for regulation for some time.”
However, the risk of not complying is significant, both reputationally and financially. Within the EU, under the EU AI Act, for example, violations can cause administrative fines of €35 million or 7% of total global turnover, whichever is greater.
“There is a real need for businesses to set their own guardrails as legislation in the UK catches up. If they don’t fully understand the legal and ethical boundaries – whether around data protection, intellectual property, or equality law – the consequences could be profound. A single misjudgement could expose the organisation to group litigation.”