Councillors in Plymouth who have babies will continue to get allowances now that the city has introduced parental leave.

The council wants to attract new members, especially women, and keep them when they choose to reproduce.

Women will be entitled to six months’ maternity leave from their due date or if they adopt, and men can take two weeks’ paternity leave.

They will continue to receive a basic allowance of £12,752 a year.

Female councillors can extend maternity leave up to a year by agreement.

Following a review by an independent remuneration panel, other amendments to the allowances include a special responsibility payment for the chair of the scrutiny management board.

Committee chairs receive £12,752 on top of their basic allowance.

New rules also allow them not to take the payments if they wish.

Cllr Andy Lugger (Con, Southway) said it is very difficult to get suitable people to become councillors, so he welcomed the amendments put forward by a cross-party group.

“Being a councillor is an act of giving energy, passion and expertise to a community, but it is very difficult to get suitable characters to become councillors. We have endeavoured to make this position as attractive as possible.”

He said 35 years ago, he was told by the chairman of his party that joining the council costs people an awful lot of money as there were no meaningful allowances and the only people who could do it were self-employed or had public sector jobs, but things had changed.

He claimed the changes to allowances in Plymouth were “far reaching” and “better than what any other local authority has to offer.”

Cllr Terri Beer (Ind, Plympton Erle) welcomed the changes but would have also liked a bereavement policy.

“I have been hit three times in the last two years by close family bereavements and it would have been nice to take time away from being a councillor to grieve, but I have not been able to,” she said.

The leader of Plymouth City Council receives an annual total allowance of £51,007, the deputy leader £39,699 and the lord mayor £30,467.

Members of the cabinet receive £38,249 and the leader of the opposition party earns £25,504.

Vice chairs of the planning and licensing committees receive £6,376 and £3,188 respectively, on top of their basic allowance.