To start maternity leave a month before due date?

[Closingtime94]

Hello,

I was just wondering if taking maternity leave a month before due date would be unreasonable - my due date is the 31st of January but I know it can be two weeks either way and I would like some time off after Christmas haha and before the baby arrives - is this too soon or would it be okay?

I'm new to pregnancy and Mat leave and everything so wanted peoples opinions and whether they think it's too soon or not or what may be a better idea

Thanks

I had a month off before the due date with mine, I think I had 2 weeks annual leave and 2 weeks mat leave. Both DC were late but better than still being at work stressed.

I’m also due 31st Jan, congratulations! I’ll be taking my maternity leave from the 18th Dec to coincide with schools breaking up for Xmas.

I work in a school so it’s easier for me to start mat leave before the holidays rather than coming back for a week or two then leaving. But, with my 1st baby I didn’t work in a school and I still took about a month off before my due date. It was nice having a bit of time to myself while my husband was at work.

I don’t think anyone can make that decision for you.
I had an easy pregnancy, in a desk job that I knew couldn’t accommodate me WFH for the last couple of weeks. Also due in January, I knew that early Jan was a quiet time in my industry, so likely to be an easy few weeks.
It was far more important to me to have as much maternity leave with my baby as possible, versus time at home before.

I was due on a Saturday, and baby came on due date. I officially worked until the day before - although I did book a week of holiday that preceding week!

I had everything ready for instant handover in case of surprises.

It was actually really cushy, cos everyone assumed I’d work til Xmas only... so I got paid for doing not a lot

So personally I’d say it’s too early, as you get less time with baby on leave. But that’s my choices and my job.

I had a month off before my due date - using up one weeks annual leave and three weeks of maternity.

What is your commute to work like? Mine was long and involved public transport and walking several miles so I appreciated not having to do that while heavily pregnant. If I lived around the corner from work I might have done something different.

*COULD accommodate WFH

Take it off if you want, just make sure you do the financials. I worked to 37w with my son and felt completely fine, I went at 37w as I was being induced, could have worked longer.
I’m going at 37+1 this time and frankly I’m fucking knackered now, I’m 37w tomorrow.
I plan on becoming one with my sofa, the telly and my birthing ball.

I finished a month before. Some annual leave some may leave. Ended up having the baby two weeks early, so I'm glad I did

There's no right or wrong answer.

I used a whole year's annual leave before my due date, so I finished 6 weeks before my due date. My job is physical and I felt crap and couldn't do half my job, so I needed to. But I certainly felt I made the right decision

I was due 24th Jan, started my Mat leave the day before Xmas Eve, I worked in retail and really wanted to actually have an Xmas break
I was very round and it was good I stopped at that point anyway due to health/mobility

What is your concern about it being too soon? Your employer's reaction or you possibly regretting not having more time with the baby? Legally, you can start your maternity leave from 29 weeks, so go when you want

I started my maternity leave at 36 weeks but I took that as holiday right up until my due date, so technically my maternity leave didn't start until the day baby was born so as to maximise my maternity leave once baby was here. It's a good job I did as she arrived 10 days early so I didn't get much time to relax as had spent the first two weeks of leave manically trying to get ready for her arrival. Can you look at taking holiday first?

I’m planning to finish a month before. It will be 2 weeks of annual leave and 2 weeks mat leave. I think I will really benefit from the rest before the baby comes, and if they come early even more so!

So, you’d otherwise be going back after Christmas at 36-37 weeks? I wouldn’t want to stop and start again for a week or 2. Could you use annual leave over Christmas, then go straight into Mat leave in January?

My due date for my first was 31st January and I took from mid-December off. I think it's fine if you have the leave to take. Mine came mid-January so I was happy with my decision.

I was due on the 26th January and opted to start maternity leave before Christmas. I think this made more sense than going back for a week or 2 in January. Assuming you can afford to do so, of course.

I took a month off before, I used a weeks annual leave but baby was born 4 weeks early so ended up not getting my time off to myself anyway

I think it depends on your job and your pregnancy. If you can work from home or have an easy commute and a desk job, you might be able to work longer. If you have a long commute and/or have to be on your feet or just have a stressful job, you might need to stop earlier. Equally, with a straightforward pregnancy you might be fine, but not if you have any complications or anything making you particularly uncomfortable (eg PGP affecting mobility and sleep).

Bear in mind that baby could arrive after the due date - statistically first babies are usually late (the average is 40+5 I think??).

DC1 was born at 41+4, I'd been off work for 5 weeks by that point and was going a bit mad!

With DC2 I had 3.5 weeks off work before she was born and that was about right. (I was working from home before that, might have used annual leave to stop sooner otherwise.)

You can start ML anytime from 29 weeks. Up to you to agree with your employer when you finish. I am due 7th Jan and finsihing at 34 weeks on 27th Nov. I am taking leave and accrued bank holidays the first 3 weeks then starting maternity leave on 21st Dec. With accrued leave at the other end I wont need to go back until Jan 2022, 14 glorious months off!

Do as you feel!

I took 3 weeks with my first, which was five by the time she arrived. Lots of time - it was lovely to go on walks and generally do lots of prep before she arrived, just the last couple of weeks of being overdue that were a bit annoying.

Worth checking how much holiday you have as PP has said, as you can use annual leave to delay the start of your maternity leave (and your employer might be keen for you to take it rather than pay you for it etc).

If it were me, in my industry we are usually manic to Christmas, so would be great to have a couple of weeks of clearing my desk/inbox and generally pottering when it is quiet and easy in early January rather than scrabbling around in December, but that might be very different for you and you might be pretty uncomfortable in the last month.

Whatever you decide won't be unreasonable!

I took 3 weeks holiday before ds1 with official mat leave starting on my due date, I’d originally planned to finish at 38 weeks but was able to change it nearer the time based on how I was feeling (knackered & hot as it turns out hence the extra week).

Finished at 38 weeks with ds2 again using holiday but I could have changed if needed. I felt very different with my 2nd pregnancy though & could have comfortably work till my due date I felt so good.

I think you just have to do whatever your comfortable with & what works for you. Personally I was conscious of wanting as much time at home as possible after they were born but everyone is different.

I think you can take it off whenever! It depends on your situation and what you want to do. I'm due a similar time to you but stopping 2 weeks before my due date. I'd do it later if i could because my working life is easy enough - it's just sitting at a computer and i don't commute any more (wfh due to Covid). So i want to take my time as late as possible because i think i can manage, and then i will have more time off actually with the baby.
If you do something more physical, like teaching where you are on your feet a lot (and can't easily go to the toilet!) or maybe if you have a long commute on public transport i can see why you'd want to finish earlier. But ultimately it's your choice anyway. I read a thread on here recently where loads of different people were saying when they'd stopped and it really varied. Just depends what's right for you.

I went off at 37w with DC1 and he came at 40+9.

Looking back it was nice to have that time but I was so bored!

If you are planning to go back and want to take the full year it may be worth sucking up working this Xmas, to have next Xmas off.

With DC2 and DC3 (both Mid January born, not twins!). I worked over the festive period as it meant that I got the following festive period off so I was around for their first Christmas [I took a full year with all 3 DC].

I was also once due on 31st January (10 years ago!). It depends a lot on your job and health, so completely up to you. I went 2 weeks before EDD with first pregnancy because I wanted to make sure I was ready. But in retrospect I regretted not having those two weeks at the end of mat leave. I'd much rather have the extra time with the baby than before, and since then I've worked as close to EDD as possible. No manual work and good health.

It’s not unusual. I did 38 weeks. But I have friends who did 36. So go for it.