Maternity rights on a fixed term contract

[ashsplash]

I've been a teacher and a TA in the same school since Nov 2019. Basically I was a maternity cover for a year, didnt want to leave so took a TA role there, then back to cover a mat leave until July, when the contract ends. My baby is Due 10th August. Do I qualify for any maternity pay?

[Littlepaws18]

I would seek advice from HR or your union but my gut reaction is I don't think so. Especially after your baby will be born after your contract ends.

[Tryingtobehelpfulmama]

You should be entitled to statutory maternity pay but it doesn't sound like you would get occupation maternity pay. Agree with speaking to HR to see what your entitlement is

[FTMF30]

Think you'd be entitled to maternity pay up until the end of your contract, which is pretty useless for you seeing as your baby is due in August.

[Az20]

As long as you have worked for more than 26 weeks in the 66 weeks prior to birth you will be entitled to Maternity Allowance directly from the government which is 39 weeks at around £150/week. They have a calculator you can do to check this.

SMP, which is basically the MA above but the first 6 weeks @ 90% of your normal salary, is a bit confusing for contractors.
You may be able to get SMP, although unlikely, due to working for the same place for such a long time. As long as your contracts ran one after the other with no breaks of more than 1 week between one contract ending and another starting this is a good starting point and an argument for continuous service which after a set time gives you the same benefits as a perm member of staff. This is not guaranteed as you are still a contractor so it's worth getting advice from ACAS and your HR to see if you could get this. Some companies may give it to you but it's up to their discretion.
If they agree to pay you SMP they may recommend starting maternity early so your still in contract when it starts.