New parents returning to work could receive greater protection from redundancy under government proposals.

The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) will launch a consultation on Friday which will look at extending the legal protection against redundancy for pregnant and new mothers so it continues for up to six months after they return to work.

It will also consult on affording the same protections to parents returning from adoption leave or shared parental leave.

The Equality Act of 2010 currently sets out a “protected period” during which women who are pregnant or have recently given birth are explicitly protected from discrimination.

The period runs from the start of a pregnancy until the woman returns to work after maternity leave, or two weeks after the end of the pregnancy if she is not entitled to maternity leave.

There are currently no such protections for parents adopting children, or those taking shared parental leave.

Research commissioned by BEIS in collaboration with the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) in 2016 found that one in nine women had been fired or made redundant when they returned to work after having a child, or were treated so badly they felt forced out of their job.

Theresa May said: “People in this country already benefit from some of the most rigorous workplace standards in the world, including parental leave and pay entitlements, but we are determined to do even more as we leave the EU.”

The prime minister added: “It’s unacceptable that too many parents still encounter difficulties when returning to work. Today’s proposals are set to provide greater protection for new parents in the workplace, and put their minds at ease at this important time.”

Justine Roberts, Mumsnet’s founder, said the website’s users talked a lot about pregnancy and maternity discrimination, and that 96% of the women it surveyed in 2018 said having children affected their careers for the worse.

“It’s a multifaceted problem requiring a change in attitude and culture as well as legislation, but stronger legal protection is a very welcome first step,” said Roberts.

Joeli Brearley, founder of Pregnant Then Screwed, which works against maternity or pregnancy discrimination, described the proposals as “just papering over the cracks”.

She said that having a “protected period” seemed to have little effect and pointed to the EHRC research which showed that 1% of women were made redundant while pregnant, 3% while on maternity leave and 2% on their return from maternity leave.

“More mothers are made redundant when the enhanced protections exist than when they don’t – proving that the enhanced protections which are already in place are not working, so what is the point of extending them?” she said.

“The problem isn’t the law – the law is very clear. It is illegal to make someone redundant due to pregnancy or maternity.”

Among the problems, she said, were that legislation did not support fathers to take time out of work to look after children and that childcare was prohibitively expensive.

“Women are often unable to return to work, thereby reinforcing the outdated notion that all mothers want to stay at home with their kids and aren’t interested in a career,” she said.

“Until we solve these issues, and create a society where women can be both breadwinner and caregiver, we will never reduce discrimination in the workplace.”