Those on maternity leave face an interesting issue at the moment: what should they do about KIT days?

“Keeping-in-touch days” are a sector-wide offer for parents returning to work following a period of maternity or shared parental leave. They are working days designed to ease the transition out of the baby bubble.  

Making KIT days work

Employees can request up to 10 KIT days (and 20 SPLIT days if they take Shared Parental Leave) as long as they are mutually agreed by their employer.

My line managers couldn’t have provided more accommodating KIT days. And my school got every aspect of them right - both those outlined by the law and those considered best practice across all industries.

Now, more than ever, KIT days need to be discussed and best practice followed. So here are four things my school did that every school should do. 

1. Schools should offer them - you should not have to chase

My school offered me the KIT days - an invitation I took for granted until I learned through The MaternityTeacher PaternityTeacher (MTPT) Project that many schools don’t, owing to budget constraints, pigheadedness or ignorance regarding their existence or value.  

My school offered them in the pregnancy and maternity policy that I received when I announced my pregnancy, and then queried my interest again around 3-4 months into my first maternity leave. By my second pregnancy, we were planning potential ways to use my KIT days before I had even finished work!

2. Mutual agreement is key

All my KIT days were mutually agreed upon by both my head of department or line manager and me, but this is where conflict between school and teachers can arise. 

I offered a blue-sky list of what I thought would be helpful for me, my colleagues and my students. My managers reviewed this, offered new suggestions and vetoed some ideas they felt wouldn’t work. I felt comfortable refusing some of their suggestions that didn’t take my fancy. It truly was a mutual decision. 

3. Flexibility makes a huge difference

As I was breastfeeding and had no alternative or affordable childcare, my KIT tasks were completed remotely and on site with my babies visiting school with me. This was easy to do as they were so small, and could be carried in slings or set up in their bouncers in my school workspace.  

It is a testament to the culture of my school that professional conversations and cuddles occurred simultaneously, and students were afforded the treat of meeting the baby they had anticipated for so long during my pregnancy. 

While not every school or teacher may be able to safely accommodate babies on site, this is a delightful experience for everyone if it can be arranged, and goes a long way in emphasising a colleagues’ value after a period of absence.

4. Payment is optional, but should be provided

Legally, KIT days don’t have to be paid, but interestingly, SPLIT days do. Thankfully, most schools adhere to best practice and pay a day rate - normally a teacher’s annual salary divided by 195 to reflect our contracted working hours.  

At The MTPT Project, we also remind our community that any maternity pay might be deducted from a KIT day payment, so it makes sense to save them until maternity pay is reduced to statutory, or after nine months when it stops altogether.  

Emma Sheppard is founder of the MaternityTeacher PaternityTeacher Project and a lead practitioner for English