Mat Leave- how many take a year?

[apples82]

I'm starting to think about how long to take off for maternity leave, this is my first pregnancy ...

Alot of the decisions I presume are made financially as to how long you can take off.

But how long does everyone take off?

I know the SMP covers the first six months, do many new mums then go back to work, or stay off for the full year if financially viable?

[JiltedJohnsJulie]

Marabou I saved up for my Mat Leave with both of mine and bought the bare minimum for both LOs. I just figured that the more I spent on LO the less time I would be able to take off on Mat Leave.

[ginmakesitallok]

I took 6 months with DD1 - and was gladto get back to work! With DD2 I took the full year - and went back to work part-time. With DD2 I had made a lot more friends with other school mums, so didn't have the same lack of adult company I had with DD1, we were also in a better situation financially.

[GnomeDePlume]

Sleep was never really a problem. DH and I took it in turn to have one night on and one night off so that every other night we each got a proper night's sleep.

I had tried to breastfeed but it didnt work (DC1 got well and truly jaundiced in the process). After that we switched to bottles.

DC1 had a really great childminder who had DC1 for nearly 3 years. She was truly marvellous, gave me lots of good advice which I would have thrown back in my own mother's face.

DC1's CM retired so DC2 went to a different CM and DC1 went to nursery. This was probably the worst time but only lasted around a year. I would drop DC2 with CM near our home, drive to the next town to drop DC1 at the nursery then onto the town after that for work. DH reversed the procedure to pick up DCs.

Once DC3 arrived, DH angled for redundancy and TBH our childcare problems stopped completely.

I have always been major breadwinner so long maternity leave was never going to be an option. I am pragmatic and dont dwell on things which cant be changed, we did what we had to do.

[mimsa]

Hi I took 6 months off with my first son and regretted it as I went back to work full time. I am now off with my second and have decided to take a year off. Yes month is tight as the maternity pay goes down but you wont get that time back with your child when you go back to work :)

[apples82]

Thats what i'm thinking mimsa, even if the money is tough to work out, i'd prefer to try to scrimp by if it means more time of with the LO.

[Alibabaandthe40nappies]

I planned to take a full year with DS, and with holiday it actually stretched to 13.5 months.

In the end I didn't go back because they offered me a role in a different location and couldn't even tell me what I was going to be doing - so I told them to fuck off.

[bessie26]

I took a year off with DD & am planning to do the same with #2 as I loved every minute of it! I was pleasantly surprised at how little I spent while I was off too!

[Janoschi]

Lucky lot! I'm a freelancer and am therefore entitled to absolutely nothing :-(

[monkeymiss]

Haven't read all posts in detail, but I would tell your employer that you want to take your full entitlement ie 12 months. If you then wished to return earlier that is probably easier to negotiate than trying to extend your leave. I have a friend who said she was going to take 6 months, has managed to extend to 9 (sounds like she's been working at home a lot through this time though) and wishes she could take longer.

I've taken a year's leave plus holidays both times.

[BodyUnknown]

I was due July 7, I was off work from mid June but had a week's study leave before a professional exam in mid-June. I returned to work in the new year, so effectively 6 months on maternity leave (90% pay for 6 weeks, SMP for the remainder). I personally couldn't wait to get back to work [terrible mother alert?] and am still working full time now and pleased with my decision. I love the time I have with my daughter, now 10 months, and really make the most of it. Recent pregnant women at work have all planned to return to work after 9 months (when SMP ceases to be paid).

You are entitled to 9 months SMP no matter what your company policy. Cannot believe they would suggest otherwise!

I would say though that I know a lot of women who, like me, planned to return after 6 months, but as that time approached, decided they wanted 9. I do not know many who have taken the full year but I suspect that is more to do with the financial burden than anything else.

[WhenCanISleep]

I toook the full year off with both my kids. Financially it was really tough, but kids are way more important than the things we went without (holidays/meals out etc). We just upped our savings while I was pregnant (I know not everyone can do that tho) and used savings up during maternity leave.
babies change so much during that first year -and caring for them is exhausting: I wouldn't have missed it for the world :)

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[thisisstupid]

I'm on maternity leave now with my second he's due in july bt expecting an early baby, i'm just taking 9 months plus holiday but when i go back to work i'll only be working 2 days a week, children are lovely but hard work and i see going back to work as a break.

[KatieWatie]

I'm probably going to take 9 months to a year. I get paid 90% for 4 months then SMP for 5 months. If I went back earlier it wouldn't be for financial reasons (we have savings, my husband works and gets army pension) but more my concern that I'm going to get left behind at work. I am also expecting to miss adult company as I live in quite an isolated place, very far from my family. Childcare - not sure

It's a bit of a dilemma really but it's good to read other people's points of view here.

[Newmummazza]

Can anyone tell me what happens if you do not return to work?Do you have to pay back some of your Maternity leave pay?

[GwendolineMaryLacey]

If your employers have paid you over the odds then it's quite common to be asked to pay that back. So, for example, our place gives 6 months full pay. If I didn't go back afterwards then I would have been asked to pay back the difference between that and SMP. However, they stipulate that you have to go back for at least a month to get past that. As you handily accrue annual leave while on mat leave, that leave could be used as a month's notice thereby getting round paying it back.

[meowchut]

If you are thinking of having another baby then taking a year off is good, you might get pregnant again while on the first maternity leave. In that way you get full pay for the second maternity leave, and don't have to pay for childcare :) Just a thought

[kiteflying]

I took a full year, then added long service leave, and accrued annual leave... It was bliss.
But then, my boss had been quite hideous to me when pregnant and when I told them I would take the full year they more than hinted that my job would disappear if I left it that long.
In the end, I decided I could rush back and fight my corner or I could enjoy the time with my DD. I chose my DD. I would make the same choice again.

To the OP, my HR dept advised to apply for the full year and come back earlier if that was my decision - it seems extensions are frowned on and take forever to get approved.

[cuppateaanyone]

I went back when DS was 5.5 months, financially there wasn't an option however tbh I was glad of the break, I almost lost my mind at home and never managed to accept that i'll never have a second to get things done, sad i know but I just wasn't cut out to stay at home and think DS is far happier at nursery.
My job is pretty demanding and there are still days when I find it tough (been back 4.5 months now) I wasn't prepared for how lonely i'd feel back at work, all my other friends took a year off so spent alot more time being there for each other plus actually having to think and be productive is hard after a few bad nights...still wouldn't have changed it tho

[otchayaniye]

I took 17 months off with my first (I was on assignment abroad but repatriated and had issues with my employer in the assignment country but thankfully sorted to my advantage and returned to work in home country (UK). Went back to work three days a week and husband and I work part time and share care.

This time I'm taking the full year (just started leave) plus all the holiday I've accrued plus some three months parental leave. Will continue with our sharing care and working part time.

Lucky in that it just so happens its more financially advantageous to both work part time (he earns more for his two night shifts because they are at night) than one partner work and the other remain at home. And there are the benefits of my husband being a SAHD to all intents and purposes (ie daughter is asleep when he works and he just naps a few hours in the day to catch up). He loves it too. Really loves it.

[figgygal]

I'm looking at 6 months with some annual leave tacked on at start and end. My company pay 12 weeks full then 27 weeks at SMP. I'm on a good wage and find I spend every penny Im paid god only knows how we going to survive on £125 a week need to start saving asap.

[Katiebeau]

I took 7 months and used holidays to work part time for another 4 months or so before going back FT. I will do something similar with our new baby. I am using holiday to finish earlier though (33 weeks). I think it really depends on your own personnal circumstance. If you are the main bread winner it is almost impossible to survive even with good savings! That said I work from home so DD days in nursery aren't anywhere near 11 hours but again this unavoidable if you commute. I loved every minute at home with DD - beats the hell out of working for me!

[notcitrus]

I was very lucky in getting 6 months on 90% full pay, and then 3 months SMP. I went back when ds was 11 months which was almost a year of mat leave.

I returned when I did as it was mid-August when my workplace is very quiet and I thought that would make it easier to adjust to being back. I went back 3 days a week to a different post (old one finished about the time I left anyway) and it worked really well. Ds was never a clingy baby and loved nursery (2 days to start, then 3 days).

I'd tell work you expect to take a year, as then they have a good case for getting money to cover you and lots of people will be wanting a 12-month contract so they should be able to get someone good. My work say maternity leave is OK as you can cover it and you get lots of notice, but paternity leave is a pain in the backside as colleagues have to do all the cover and it's so unpredictable!

[stressheaderic]

Considerations to make:

-who will mind baby once you go back to work.
I had no family help and thought 6 months was too young for her to go to full time nursery. She went to nursery at 11 months and was fine.

-the time of year.
I was off Jan to Dec. DD born end of Feb, by the time I came out of the fog it was just well-timed for the good weather, we had a fab summer and then I loved being indoors on wild and windy autumn days. I went back just before Christmas which was a lovely time to go back (I'm a teacher).

-how much you can save between now and baby being born. I drove everywhere, no taxis on nights out, no alcohol, no new clothes, not much in way of frittering away cash, did lots of overtime at work....saved £5k.

Just as a straw poll, out of my antenatal friendship group of 5:
-one had 11 months off then went back 3 days a week (me!)
-one had 13 months off inc using holidays then went back 20 hours a week
-one had 6 months off and went back full time
-one had 7 months, then staggered holidays for 3 months then back to full time
-one had 9 months then went off sick for 3 months then went back 29 hours a week on average (shifts)

We were all VERY skint by the end but happy, loved every minute!

Hope this helps!

[H007]

I am taking 6 weeks at 90% of my salary followed by 3 months at 50% then 6 months at SMP that is my companies pollicy. I could take an extra 6 weeks off but it would be at no pay. My holiday entitlement runs from September to September so I will be taking my annual leave prior to my ML.