To argue maternity leave dates?

If you work in HR you will know that the system doesn’t cater for putting a date later than your due date for the start of your maternity leave - but that you can extend the start of your maternity leave IF you haven’t given birth by that date. Legally however, maternity leave has to start no later than the day you give birth

Your system maybe, but my system does allow for it. Legally the latest maternity leave can start is the day after you give birth.

If you work in HR you will know that the system doesn’t cater for putting a date later than your due date for the start of your maternity leave - but that you can extend the start of your maternity leave IF you haven’t given birth by that date. Legally however, maternity leave has to start no later than the day you give birth.

I'm due on a Friday and I've asked to start maternity leave the following Monday (I'm expecting to go over with it being first, and starting on a Monday makes my maternity pay payments tidier).

Obviously if I go early then I will start my maternity leave earlier, but there's absolutely no rule that you can't start your maternity leave after your due date.

Teachers don't accrue holidays while on mat leave. In practice it means their 28 days will be made up in school holidays either before or after mat leave starts.
So yes if mat leave started at the beginning of summer hols op would essentially lose that period of leave.

My understanding is if you leave immediately after maternity you would be paid for any statutory holiday not taken.

@Everyusernameisinuse1

Sorry, I still don’t think I’m fully understanding. My holidays are 25 days plus 8 days for bank hols (33 days).
When on maternity leave I accrue at statutory + bank hols so they are reduced by 5 days as my holidays are above statutory.

As you have set hols do you mean that if leave starts before the end of the school year OP would loose the additional 6 weeks?

Or not accrue any hols?

@Everyusernameisinuse1 yes, teachers can have 12 months off max. The holidays can't be accrued because they are on set dates. Unless of course you start your mat leave on, say 20th July 2025 and 20th July 2026 is the first day of the holidays. So you don't actually go back until 1st September 2026.

You don't have to start mat leave by your due date. I work in HR. It is surprising, but it's the law. You will normally only be able to go 2 weeks past your due date so you could just put that date, and if you have baby earlier then mat leave will start the next day.

@Needlenardlenoo This surprised me. I realise it’s way over but do you mean if teachers take a year off they wouldn’t even accrue statutory holiday for the year they are off? I’m not a teacher/in private sector so am just interested in knowing.

https://www.mtpt.org.uk/ these people are the experts. Ask them.

I don't think teachers do accrue holiday because school holidays are already well over the minimum required.

Something else to look out for OP is that school HR is often unreachable in the school holidays. My school agreed to pay me over the summer holidays and then messed it up, but it wasn't possible to sort it out and get the back pay until the September payroll - very annoying!

Not a teacher but public sector and we have to start by due date at latest (or day child is born if earlier).

You cannot be asked to work during the hols if on shared parental leave unless all teachers in the school are being asked to. Lots of helpful info here https://www.teachersspl.co.uk/

I think the problem with this post OP is that potentially lots of people will have also been given misinformation from their schools and then confidently repeat it. I'm sure I've read about this exact scenario on MN before (maybe worth searching) and after much arguing the woman was able to start maternity leave from the day the baby was born. The advice from your union and ACAS seems to back up your POV. Perhaps worth speaking to your union for advice.

There have been some changes this year (since 6th April) with regards to leave, Change in government, less notice etc but when you were in your earlier stages of pregnancy the 2024-25 regulations would have applied in terms of notice.
Your employer needs to follow employment law & it doesn’t seem they are doing anything unlawful however as the law has since changed I would look at these regs.
If you were to give birth later you could use some holiday. You accrue holiday still while on leave. 😊

I think that’s a widespread rule, not just your school.

That’s what we are working with, and 3 different bodies have all OK’ed it.
if you are employed under STPCD you cannot be obligated to go in more than the 195 days we are contracted for. I’d definitely recommend getting in touch with your union if you are worried about being made to do actual work during holidays using ShPL.

You can choose when to start maternity leave but no later than the day you actually give birth. I have supported a colleague with this very recently and it’s been checked over by union, head and LA.
Make sure you utilise ShPL if you are eligible. With a summer hols due date, you would probably be “returning to work” for the Xmas hols, then using ShPL for spring 1, returning for Feb half term, using ShPL for spring 2, returning to work for Easter hols and then using ShPL until your actual real return to work. You can only take 3 blocks of ShPL, but this would give you 5 weeks of full pay instead of SMP those weeks. You still only get a total of 39 weeks mat pay though, but this would mean 44 weeks of some pay.

Teacher here. Was told I cannot work on my due date so my due date was when maternity leave started (x3 babies). I was not due in summer holidays so I was in work the day before I was due for all 3.

It's been a few years but I think so! They'd had my MAT B1 form by that point so they knew my due date already so I just confirmed what my
plans were in writing.

I think you're conflating SMP with maternity leave. They're separate. You may be able to start your leave when the baby is born (although I still can't find the info in the legislation) but you have to give 28 days notice for SMP to start.