what are previously working new mums entitled to?

[21Rach]

totally uninformed when it comes to this any help would be really appreciated as am scaring myself to death that for maternity leave i will end up homeless. i plan to take 6 months off it that helps. earn about 11k. and am 100% clueless lol! thanks people xxxxx

 

[Seraphim]

Hey Rach,

it depends lots on your circumstances.

(You'll have to double check all the following info, cos it's just from, memory...)

First off, will you have been working for your employer for the 26 weeks leading up to birth?
That's the decider really on whether you get SMP (Statutory Maternity Pay) or if you need to apply for MA (Maternity allowance)
SMP = First 6 weeks leave at 90% of your pay, then £123 a week for 33 weeks (That's 9 months total leave, sound like you'd be going back befor that would end)
MA = 39 weeks at £123 (or £117... about that, I think)

Then theres WTC (Working Tax Credits) - This is VERY person specific so you need to look into this yourself - but the basic premise is, the less you earn (ie when your wages go from full to only SMP) you should get an extra 39p for every £1 of normal wages you haven't earnt... upto your total WTC award.

Don't forget, your total earnings may be 11k, but your take home will be less, and it's your take home the look at. Plus how many hours you work, if you have a partner, how long they work, and their take home.

Once the baby's born, and especially when you go back to work, they take childcare cost into account.

Then there's CTC (Child Tax Credits) which for you might be over £2500 a year, best to check THIS THREAD

THEN There's CB (Child Benefit) which is about £20 a week.

PLUS there's a HIP (Health In Pregnancy) grant of about £190 which you can get at about 25 weeks pregnant - you need a form from your Midwife and complete/submit it in the right time window - look this up.

It's confusing at first - but well worth looking into.
Basically if you take home £16k or less then you really need to explore childcare vs reduced hours or not going back to work.
It sucks, but that's the way it is.
Financially you might be better off staying home longer, but workwise you might suffer from not progressing in your career path.
It's serious enough to sit down and get your head around the numbers.

I hope this helps. Remember I might not be 100% there as it's been a couple months since I was looking at my own set up.

If you have a partner it will greatly influence the calculations.
Oh and, as pedantic as it sounds, don't forget to adjust for other costs... like I spend £100+ per month just in fuel getting to and from work... and you'll need to look at what childcare costs you might have to cover going back to work.

Will try to help with any questions if I can.

x