NFRS 2023 - Maternity leave

You asked for

We are collecting information about maternity leave pay for firefighters in your fire and rescue service. Below is the information we would like to obtain from you under the Freedom of Information Act.

We would like to receive data relating to maternity leave pay made by your fire and rescue service, the below questions cover the 52-week period (Ordinary Maternity Leave and Additional Maternity Leave):

1. What pay does a firefighter receive for first 6 weeks (inclusive) of maternity leave?
2. What pay does a firefighter receive for the next 12 weeks (inclusive) of maternity leave?
3. What pay does a firefighter receive during for the next 21 weeks (inclusive) of maternity leave?
4. What pay does a firefighter receive during for the remaining 13 weeks (inclusive) of maternity leave?
5. As of 01/07/23 the salary for a competent firefighter is £36,226, what pay would a firefighter receive for 12 months maternity leave? Please can you state a numerical figure with a corresponding breakdown.
6. Attach a copy of your most recent FRS maternity policy.

Our Response

1. What pay does a firefighter receive for first 6 weeks (inclusive) of maternity leave?

   Answer: - This information is deemed exempt by virtue of section 21 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 whereby the information is accessible to the applicant by other means.

2. What pay does a firefighter receive for the next 12 weeks (inclusive) of maternity leave?

   Answer: - This information is deemed exempt by virtue of section 21 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 whereby the information is accessible to the applicant by other means.

3. What pay does a firefighter receive during for the next 21 weeks (inclusive) of maternity leave?

   Answer: - This information is deemed exempt by virtue of section 21 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 whereby the information is accessible to the applicant by other means.

4. What pay does a firefighter receive during for the remaining 13 weeks (inclusive) of maternity leave?

   Answer: - This information is deemed exempt by virtue of section 21 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 whereby the information is accessible to the applicant by other means.

5. As of 01/07/23 the salary for a competent firefighter is £36,226, what pay would a firefighter receive for 12 months maternity leave? Please can you state a numerical figure with a corresponding breakdown.

   Answer: - This information is deemed exempt by virtue of section 21 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 whereby the information is accessible to the applicant by other means.

6. Attach a copy of your most recent FRS maternity policy.

   Answer: - Please refer to the attached PDF file for POL 3042 – Joint Maternity Policy and Procedure.

21. Information accessible to applicant by other means.

1. Information which is reasonably accessible to the applicant otherwise than under section 1 is exempt information.
2. For the purposes of subsection (1)—
   1. Information may be reasonably accessible to the applicant even though it is accessible only on payment, and
   2. Information is to be taken to be reasonably accessible to the applicant if it is information which the public authority or any other person is obliged by or under any enactment to communicate (otherwise than by making the information available for inspection) to members of the public on request, whether free of charge or on payment.
3. For the purposes of subsection (1), information which is held by a public authority and does not fall within subsection (2)(b) is not to be regarded as reasonably accessible to the applicant merely because the information is available from the public authority itself on request, unless the information is made available in accordance with the authority’s publication scheme and any payment required is specified in, or determined in accordance with, the scheme.

Section 21 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 is categorised as an Absolute and Class Based type exemption and therefore does not require a public interest test to be carried nor must Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service articulate the harm in disclosure.

The information requested can be accessed at the following location.

Check if you can get Maternity or Paternity Leave or Pay, or Maternity Allowance - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Each individual will have specific circumstances that may impact their eligibility to claim statutory maternity pay (SMP) or occupational maternity pay (OMP). Individuals are able to calculate their entitlement via the above link. We’ve also provided the following table which explains the eligibility for SMP and OMP and how it is paid to assist and can also be located within the NFRS Policy attached.