Mat leave and working?

[frannie2013]

HI
I'm about 6 months pregnant and thinking of what i'll do re Mat leave. it would be really useful to know what you are doing so i get a realistic sense of things. i've no idea.
also are you/did you do general work while you were off? my job is pretty full on (who's isn't?!), things change rapidly and i'm worried that if i don't at least read stuff while i'm off returning will be a nightmare. i'm also worried though that if i start reading it will stress me out as there is never enough time now to do things and ignorance is bliss!
i'm aware of the 10 return to work days - have they been useful?
also has your employer given you any indications of their expectations? i don't think they are legally supposed to but i thought that it might be useful (I think mine are expecting me back after 6 months... ffs... but i just found out i'm not going to get SMP so i might just have to!)
any thoughts would be great!

You may be eligible for maternity allowance which is the same as SMP so make sure you look into that.

No I was knackered so I didn't do any work. It was enough just to feed, cook and keep the house tidy. And caught up with sleep when the baby was sleeping. It was hard work in a very different way from a demanding job. You know in a way that scrubbing toilets for 8 hours a day is very hard work. Not the hardest thing in the world but drained your energy none the less.

I did only one KIT day for a return to work meeting. To be honest I find it a waste of time but my manager wanted it.

I have to do cpd to retain my professional qualification, so yes will be doing some general reading. But I don't expect to get much done. It's just to keep up a bit.

I've told them when I'm going back so they can plan, but they can't make you go back before you're ready. They can expect all they like!!

If your not entitled to smp can you get maternity allowance (same amount after the first 6 weeks anyway).

I also had 3 days with my toddler in the long weekend and it was hard work too. I felt so guilty I had to give her my ipad so I can have a power nap! I guess you could just ignore your baby crying so you can work ..... Or maybe you will be lucky to have a non sicky little sleep angel!

I am taking 9 months and am planning to do some/all oft KIT days. I have just done my first one and really enjoyed it. Missed Dd and couldn't wait for a cuddle but loved using my work head and doing something from before just for a day! Nana loved having a day with Dd too.

I thought much like you when pg with DC1. Oh I'll do x y z when off on mat leave... Busy professional with cpd to sort and maintain...

DS had other ideas. He was a tricky baby. Noone can tell you the utter exhaustion and stress involved. Totally different from work but for me, infinitely harder.

So no. I didn't do anything til i returned. No kit days as no childcare for them. No family near by and you can't just use nursery until dc is properly settled in and going regularly. (i admit i thought differently in my ignorance!).

Went back at 6m with DS and regretted it. 9m with DD was much better.

Mat leave can be blissed out, boring and/or exhausting.t Trouble is you won't know which til your baby arrives. You can always change your mind after a month or 2.

Good luck. It was exhausting and immensely hard for me but i wouldn't swap it for the world. Most fulfilling thing I've ever done. Amazing feeling being a mum.

hi All
Thanks for your thoughts. confirm everything that i've been thinking - basically my work conscience says I should do work but when bambino/a arrives the LAST thing i'll want to do is read reports etc for lots of reasons (knackered and/or have 'stuff' to do and/or want to have fun!). work is the last thing i want to do now TBH!!
hope you all have a great mat leave! i can't wait for baby to arrive!

I was v non-committal about working on mat leave. But 3 months in I've already been to 2 meetings and replied to a couple of queries to help out my cover. I'll be doing 1 full day per month from next week. It's more for my benefit so I don't have to go back completely fresh later in the year (I think I'm taking 11.5 months total).

I'm v lucky as DP is freelance and can work around my working days so we don't need childcare, also guess that PFB is an easy baby as I've felt cope-y since he was 8 weeks or so.

I was fully prepared not to go anywhere near the office, but as I'm able to I feel like it'll be good for me for when I return. Not all employers are probably able to be as flexible as mine, though - but they're seeing my time as adding value to my cover. Bit of extra cash from the KIT days for me and something to keep my brain turning over, am sure if I wasn't getting a good sleep, though, I wouldn't be able to contemplate it.

Plan not to do anything, and if you can manage reading/staying in touch around your baby - then it's a bonus.

Good luck

I went back 30% after 2 weeks - sleepy baby, I guess, so I was bored - I worked around the baby as OH was working 7days a week at the time and we had no child care.

Just see how it goes - if you have time it's a bonus if you don't have time it doesn't matter.

I've been off since beginning of Oct (dd born end of Nov, now 6 mths) and I go back 1st Sept.
I told my boss an estimated date i'd be going back before I left but don't think you have to until later, I think you have to give a certain amount of notice if you want to go part time (14wks?) but may be wrong.

I have a small part time business which I've been doing again since Feb (because I had orders not out of choice). It's been a bit stressful finding the time but I'm getting into the swing of it now.

Haven't done any KIT days with my ft job and don't plan to.

Definitely agree with just going with the flow and seeing how you feel later on once the baby's here!

I expected to do lots of keeping in touch days, but hadn't considered the practicalities of breastfeeding! I guess you could express during the day, and either leave expressed milk or feed formula that day, but after a shaky start breastfeeding - which left me with a real hatred of expressing - I simply didn't want to do that.

Why wont you be getting SMP?

thanks all. it's really useful knowing how different people are doing things.
i'm not getting SMP as i moved jobs in December and conceived after i started new job - 1 week after so it means I get the basic Allowance thing instead. the timing could not be worse.

(gutted as don't get the 90% for 6 weeks. and just to top it off the finance manager at the old work - where i'd been for 7 years... - emailed me today on another matter and just happened to 'mention' that their policy had changed and i'd get 6 months full pay if i was still there... deep breaths...)

OH just keeps saying - just remember money doesn't matter so long as you and baby are ok. and he really is right.

but i'm the main breadwinner, have a 400 mile weekly commute at the moment and have no idea what's going to happen and how we will manage on so little money. we won't starve but things are going to have to change majorly. i suppose they will anyway!!! anyway - stress attack over...

I'm 29 wks pregnant and leaving when I'm 35 wks. Planning to take the full year off all going well. I work in banking and there has just been a big restructure in my team, thankfully I've been slotted into a new role but it starts the week after I leave so my role will be covered by a secondee until I'm back. I'd like to do all the KIT days so I'm not too overwhelmed when I come back after a year into a new job but there's no expectation on me so I'll see how it goes. Thankfully the secondee position has been advertised as a 12 month one so they have me covered for the whole time!

I go back to work in July and will have had more or less a year. I've used a couple of keep I touch days so far, but am planning five in June for exactly the reason you say - to get up to speed on things. I also work in quite a fast moving industry and don't want to turn up on my first day back feeling completely clueless! I'm having a few meetings and am just planning to do some reading in the office. I have not worked at all while I've been on maternity leave.

Oh, and congrats and good luck with the birth!

Just wanted to add that I requested to do two mornings to make up a KIT day rather than a whole day which would have been quite overwhelming - I'm also bf so I could just stretch to 4hrs without too much hassle. I really enjoyed the change of pace and when I've come back home to DS its made me appreciate being at home with him even more. Little bit of extra cash doesn't hurt either!