best time to take maternity leave???

[rachael872211]

I'm hoping to leave at 34 weeks. I have 5 weeks left annual leave, and then maternity leave starts at 38 weeks. I am hoping to start my annual leave on the 22nd December, but because my annual leave is over the xmas period we have to go into a folder and be selected, and apparently this still applies if you are just using up annual leave before going on maternity. So i'm a bit anxious as normally we dont find out if we get the leave until November.

AllyK, you say you work some night shifts.....will your work let you change to day shifts instead of the nights, when they get too hard?

 

[amy.j]

im leaving at 33 weeks but the first two weeks will be holiday so 34 weeks for me do what you feel is best for you hun x

 

[lozzy21]

You have another 12 weeks before you legaly need to tell them when you want to take it. Id wait untill 23/24 weeks to make your choice. I felt fine at 13 weeks but now im starting to struggle. Iv got a very active job and am finishing when im 32 weeks, taking some holiday and then starting my maternity leave at 33 weeks.

It cant come soon enough!

 

[pinklizzy]

I'm leaving work on the 25th of October when I'll be 37 weeks, the first week of that is my remaining annual leave. 7 weeks to go

 

[ummar]

Okay I'm going to ask a silly question and I am not even sure whether I will make any sense:

My company only gives Statutory Maternity Pay which means they don't have a separate maternity policy.

Now my question is, under SMP do we accumulate annual leave during the one year maternity leave we are allowed to take?

Does my question make sense?

 

[ummar]

Okay I'm going to ask a silly question and I am not even sure whether I will make any sense:

My company only gives Statutory Maternity Pay which means they don't have a separate maternity policy.

Now my question is, under SMP do we accumulate annual leave during the one year maternity leave we are allowed to take?

Does my question make sense?

Actually, I found the answer online:

4. Does annual leave continue to accrue during maternity leave? What do we do about the fact that a woman may be on maternity leave during most of her annual leave year?
A. The Employment Rights Act provides that a woman is entitled to all her terms and conditions during both ordinary and additional maternity leave (OML and AML), apart from remuneration, as though she was at work, so she must accrue her leave, including bank holidays, throughout the whole of the maternity leave*period.*For those women employed under the Green Book, this has been the case for some time (see paragraph 11.8(b) of Part 2 of the Green Book).
This*could mean that a woman has a*significant amount of leave to take when she returns from maternity leave.**This issue can be managed*to some extent by*advising a woman about the amount of leave she will accrue if she takes the whole of her maternity leave entitlement. A woman may then, depending on the timing of her maternity leave in relation to the annual leave year, take a significant proportion of her annual leave before she starts her maternity leave.
If a woman is unable to take all of her annual leave in the leave year due to being on maternity*leave she must be allowed to carry it over. The European Court of Justice in the Gomez case (see LGE Advisory Bulletin 483) held that a woman must be able to take the annual leave that she is entitled to at a time outside her maternity leave. Although in most cases this should be possible without having to carry leave over, where a woman is unable to take her annual leave before she starts her maternity leave due to the early birth of her child or pregnancy-related sickness absence, for example, or where a woman's maternity leave overlaps with the annual leave year to a signicant extent,*exceptions should be made to carry over policies to allow*women to carry the remaining period of leave into*the next leave year.

https://www.lge.gov.uk/lge/core/page.do?pageId=126098#contents-4

 

[ummar]

This means we all have alot of leave - 24 days plus bank holidays - to take before or after our maternity leave!

 

[mommyB]

I am leaving when I am almost 36 weeks. My job consists of me standing all day, and the worst is our staff bathroom is in the basement down a flight of stairs. And I am already having trouble with the stairs. I am taking 4 weeks unpaid (as a have taken all my vacay this year already), which I have worked out with hubby and we are just going to budget during those weeks. Then I will start my year maternity when I give birth. That is what I am planning, we'll see what happens.

 

[jojo2605]

I left at 34 weeks, 3 weeks holiday and maternity pay from 37 weeks as that gave me a nice 6 weeks to take it easy and look forward to baby's arrival - Sam came 2 weeks early so only had 4 weeks in the end, glad I left when I did, you just don't know when they are going to come!!!

 

[gem_wilko]

My maternity leave starts at 34 weeks but with annual leave I'm leaving at 32 weeks. On a nurse and think the long days and nights may be a bit harsh when i'm that far along, and also getting into winter xx it's personal choice though

 

[goddess25]

I left at 34 weeks last time and it was perfect i took vacation for a month and then had 2 weeks of mat leave before birth.. i am a nurse and i was starting to struggle a bit.

This time around i have a day job and basically sit at a desk most of the time.. so i still have 4 weeks of vacation so will take that before baby born and will leave at 36 weeks.. and then start mat leave roughly at due date.

 

[allyk]

I'm hoping to leave at 34 weeks. I have 5 weeks left annual leave, and then maternity leave starts at 38 weeks. I am hoping to start my annual leave on the 22nd December, but because my annual leave is over the xmas period we have to go into a folder and be selected, and apparently this still applies if you are just using up annual leave before going on maternity. So i'm a bit anxious as normally we dont find out if we get the leave until November.

AllyK, you say you work some night shifts.....will your work let you change to day shifts instead of the nights, when they get too hard?

NOt really sure, i know we did that for one of the team members but as a manager, i dont know if they will let me?!?!

 

[angelic_one]

I've got no holiday left but that's my choice as I decided to use it all while the weathers been nice :-D I'm gonna go off work at about week 36 or maybe even later, but I only work 8-16 hours. The only reason I'll take it earlier is because returning to work afterwards for 8-16 won't really effect time with the baby THAT much either! If I worked full time I think it would be much more of a dilema, I think I'd try and take it as late as possible though, probably even up to 39 because I know I'd get bored sitting around at home and worry too much! Easy for me to say though, I enjoy my job and it's not too stressful! I was going to be a fulltime student though, with deadlines due in on the same day as the baby is born!! The only reason I haven't done this is financial.

 

[peartree]

I'll be working until 36+2d, and then using 2 weeks of annual leave which I have left over for this year, so maternity leave won't kick in until 38 weeks. I want to have as long with baby when s/he's actually here. Hopefully won't get too tired though.

 

[MrsEngland]

I'm leaving at 33weeks because i'm on my feet alllll day and i'm exhausted so i know the bigger that i get the more tired i will be.

 

[FlatShoes]

I'm due 14th Jan but am 'officially' starting my maternity leave on the 4th Jan.

As that is the first day back for people it means i'll actually break up on xmas eve.

I'm also going to try and take a weeks holiday before xmas so I finish on the 17th.

Saying that, my job is desk based so will be less tiring. Do what you feel is right for you, if you're tired and need to leave early - DO!

 

[EmzyJA]

i'm planning on taking mine at 33 weeks, simply coz i hate my job and the people i work with are not very nice, i really cannot stand my supervisor and im already struggling not to hit her with a hormaonal outburst. she's the most irritating thing ever, so i need to get out of here. lol. i dont plan on coming back x

 

[MrsH1980]

I get 26 days a year and I am going to carry 4 from this year to bring it up to 30 days (6 working weeks) and take it all before my MAT leave officially starts.

Im due 6th March so that means, all things going well I will leave on 28 January and I'll be 34+5.

So.

141 days to go then.

Not that Im counting or anything

 

[Water Baby]

I'm leaving around Christmas eve depending on how much holiday I have left. It just seemed a nice 'neat' cut-off point. With the holiday I have left I won't actually start my mat leave until early Jan as I want to have as much time off with bubs as I can.

if you dont mind me asking when are you due, sorry i know you are 5 weeks ahead of me but i cant work out dates at moment (baby brain is my excuse!!!) hehe

Sorry I didnt see you'd asked me a question. I am due 26th Jan so will be about 36 wks by the time I pack up work.

Hope that helps!

K x

 

[LuckyStarr]

I am aiming at finishing work on the 6th of december at 36 weeks for 3 weeks holiday, My maternity leave will start on the 27th of december and i am due on the 31st december, I may have to rethink this though as i am on my feet all day and walking so i will see how long i last. I just cant wait for her to arrive now though!!!!!!!!