what maternity leave would I be entitled to in a few possible employment situations I may find myself in?

[ThePartyArtist]

Can anyone help me to understand what maternity leave I would be entitled to in a few possible employment situations I may find myself in?

I have two years' service with my employer. I am currently in a contract that ends in September. I have been given verbal reassurances it'll become permanent then. We really want a baby but are not sure if it's sensible to start trying now because the contract scenario isn't in writing. These are the ways it could go - can anyone clarify whether I have correctly understood the implications:

Scenario 1: My contract becomes permanent - I would get Enhanced Maternity Pay for the first 6 weeks then SMP and would have a job to return to. Obviously this is what I am hoping for!

Scenario 2: Instead of being made permanent from September, my contract is extended for 6 months (which would take me to 10 months from now): I could go on maternity leave if I reached full term before the contract ended. I would get Enhanced and SMP but have no job to return to.

Scenario 3: Contract not extended at all after this September - I would be just a few months pregnant (if at all) but be out of a job and not entitled to any SMP?

There is also talk that my current contract (due to expire Sept 2016) could be extended to March now if I wish, would this help at all?

In the case of scenario 3 you may be entitled to maternity allowance which is the same rate as SMP

If in scenario 3 you were 25 weeks pregnant by then, I think they'd still have to pay SMP. If not you'd get maternity allowance.

Thanks Flisspaps and MintyBojingles
If scenario 3 happens I wouldn't be 25 weeks by then - it's only 17 weeks away.
What is the maternity allowance dependent upon?
The worry is, if this scenario happens, there would be a 6 month (at least) gap between the contract ending and a due date, so would I still be entitled to anything? Of course the worry is it might be very hard to find a new job under those circumstances.

www.gov.uk/maternity-allowance/eligibility Maternity Allowance eligibility info

Thanks Flisspaps the problem with this calculator is it wants to know due date and I don't have one to put in.

It does say you have to have been working until recently but I am unsure how recently.

Play around with different dates, give yourself an idea for various scenarios

Does your company have a mat leave policy? Mine has one available online so you wouldn't even have to tell anyone you were looking if thst was the case. That would help you confirm your entitlements if you stay with the company.

We waited to ttc until DHs contract was extended, not pregnant yet and though it's looking positive his contract will become perminant at some point theres no garuntees so can understand your concerns. In the end we decided that something would come allong and we would make it work whatever, been waiting for the right time for years, and we don't want to wait any longer! Good luck with everything.

Willberry yes I have looked at the policy so am clear on what happens if my contract becomes permanent. The thing I am less sure of is what happens if my contract's extended by 6 months only, or is cut short this September - i.e. do they still have to pay me enhanced mat pay if I don't have a job to return to after the leave?