Is it possible to resign while on maternity?

[Tootirred]

How does it work if you would like to resign or you know you don’t want to return to a school after maternity leave?

Check your policy. Ours requires you to repay enhanced maternity pay if we don’t return for a full year.

Yes I’m a teacher so I’m assuming I can’t just resign whenever I know that. But I’m asking specifically when on maternity is it possible to return for a few days in July and hand my resignation in then get paid over the summer holidays do I still need to return to work in September to finish of the 13 weeks. Im assuming 6 of those weeks will be covered by the summer holidays. Or is the end date 31st August.

Ok I will need to get ahold of the maternity policy, as I don’t have it yet as I am not currently on maternity I’m only 25 weeks.

Yes I’m a teacher in LA school.

I resigned in my last 3 months of maternity leave (the unpaid part). I only received SMP so waited till that was all done with, there was a specific form I had to fill in for not returning after maternity leave and I also wrote a letter of resignation to go with it. This was all in a specific maternity policy booklet. My friend had to return for a certain amount of time (6 months) as she received enhanced pay which was something like 3 months full pay and 3 months half pay, she'd have had to pay it back otherwise.

Yeah it's not contract related. Either the school or the LEA will have a maternity policy. If you get enhanced pay you may have to repay the enhanced portion.

Have you had baby? If not, I'd hold off. I thought I'd be a SAHM prior to kids arriving, but I absolutely hated it and couldn't wait to get back to work!

@Tootirred

Yes I’m a teacher so I’m assuming I can’t just resign whenever I know that. But I’m asking specifically when on maternity is it possible to return for a few days in July and hand my resignation in then get paid over the summer holidays do I still need to return to work in September to finish of the 13 weeks. Im assuming 6 of those weeks will be covered by the summer holidays. Or is the end date 31st August.

You'd need to give your usual half term notice, because usual resignation periods apply. If you r next half term period coincides with the 13 week return period then great, if not, you'll need to wait until the next one. It's 13 weeks whether full or part time though.

I just emailed. I only got statutory maternity pay so there was nothing to pay back.
I got a rather curt reply but it was a terrible place to work so I didn’t feel guilty. I knew when I left to start mat leave that I’d be doing everything possible to not have to return, and I got a new job a couple of months before mat leave finished.

My contract states that I have to return for 1 month otherwise I have to pay back enhanced mat pay. But I've tacked on annual leave onto the end of my Mat leave so technically I've already been back from mat leave for a month - just on annual leave instead.

I wasn't sure if I wanted to return to teaching after maternity leave with my 3rd child.
I didn't take the enhanced pay during my maternity leave. When I did return, they paid me the enhancement as a lump sum.

@Tootirred

Yes I’m a teacher so I’m assuming I can’t just resign whenever I know that. But I’m asking specifically when on maternity is it possible to return for a few days in July and hand my resignation in then get paid over the summer holidays do I still need to return to work in September to finish of the 13 weeks. Im assuming 6 of those weeks will be covered by the summer holidays. Or is the end date 31st August.

Normal resignation dates apply, so you either hand in your notice by the end of May for the end of August, or by the end of October to leave at the end of December.

If you want to keep the occupational maternity pay, you have to return for 13 weeks, but you've no right to leave in the middle of a term, so if you haven't done the 13 weeks by September, you're there until Christmas. (Unless the head is willing to agree to an alternative arrangement - perhaps if they have someone else due back from maternity at the point you'd finish, for example.)

The most financially expedient thing to do is to return at the beginning of the summer half-term holiday, and resign wef 31st August. You then fit your 13 weeks in, but will only actually teach for about six of them. Your partner might be able to take shared parental leave to cover that time - which is a great opportunity for them to take the lead role in parenting for a bit, and bond better with the baby. If not, maybe grandparents would come to stay.

If you're willing to forgo the occupational part of the maternity pay, you are entitled to return on the first day of the summer holidays to get full pay over the summer, even if you have resigned wef 31st August.

Have you spoken to your union rep?

I tried but he doesn’t know anything. I’m with the Neu. I’m going to try and call the main line for advice.

Thanks. I don’t want to resign due to being a sahm, I just haven’t had a good experience at the school I’m at.
I’ve not been there long at all. I was put on a support plan last year January without even knowing. Apparently they made me aware of it in my appraisal meeting but they did not.
When we returned after lock down teaching I was told about the support plan in April. However it did not start until June, then started and the mentor stopped having meetings with me after the first targets were set there was no review and only one observation of me no written feedback even though I asked. After returning in September It got ignored no mention of support plan until after the October half term holiday so Autumn2. Once started again, in a new year I got told that I would have weekly meetings which I did and have worked very hard kept an evidence folder and then had an hour long observation which didn’t go well as I am tired and now stressed and 25 weeks pregnant. Got told the support plan would continue when I return from Mat leave.

I knew I was leaving so I just received the enhanced pay and put it to the side and paid it back OP. That way I didn't have to go back.

That’s a clever way of doing it.

Yes you can. Any enhanced maternity pay you’ve received you will need to pay back. Have a look in burgundy book. When I went on MAT level I was given the option of receiving the enhanced maternity pay when I returned to work, that way you would receive if you went back but if you decided not to return you wouldn’t need to repay it.

I gave in my notice at Easter, worked two days before the summer holidays and had my enhanced mat pay deducted from my pay from over the summer. Worked out well!

When I put my maternity form in it gave me the option of taking the enhanced pay during maternity or on my return. Presumably so you can say no and not go back and not owe anything. Easier than saving it and paying it back

@Tootirred

Yes I’m a teacher so I’m assuming I can’t just resign whenever I know that. But I’m asking specifically when on maternity is it possible to return for a few days in July and hand my resignation in then get paid over the summer holidays do I still need to return to work in September to finish of the 13 weeks. Im assuming 6 of those weeks will be covered by the summer holidays. Or is the end date 31st August.

With all of mine I returned for a day in July got paid in full over the summer then returned to work in September. I would assume you could count those 6 weeks in your 13 but you would need to check.

Are you in the Uk? The burgundy book will explain your rights

@jellybe all Holidays are included in your 13 weeks to not have to pay back the mat leave pay

Read the policy. It will be like resigning normally
but you'll have to check their rules around any extra mat pay. Don't resign until the latest date you have to as circumstances may change and you may need that job.

Also consider if its worth going back just short term while you seek another job. Its often easier to get a job if you're already in a job as it takes the pressure re money off.

The simple answer is that yes, is it possible to resign.
From chats with teaching friends & non-teaching, whilst you get the same legal rights around maternity leave in reality it plays out slightly differently because of the way holidays and resignation dates work. Like some posters have said, they just came back for the last day of the summer term and then were paid in full over the summer but that depends on when your baby was born. If you're 25 weeks, that won't work out in the same way as if your baby was born in July, August or September. Hopefully the union can give you some ideas of your options.