maternity leave rights for health care assistants?!

[lea1980]

I need a little advice...
I am a health care assistant for the elderly. I am expecting my 2nd child. When pregnant with my ds in 2007, my employers told me I had to leave at least 5 weeks before edd. I just assumed this was a "health care thing" due to the risk of infections and the fact that it is a very hands on job for a heavily pregnant woman to be doing.
However, speaking to the secretary the other day about mat. leave she asked me if it was a legal requirement that i leave at 35 weeks... obviously I am very confused beacuse it was her that told me thats when i should leave in the first place!!!
I know in other lines of work mat. leave can start any time after 11 weeks before edd but are there any specials rules governing health care..or might it just be an insurance thing on my employers behalf?!
I really would like some advice because i only work part time (20 hours a week) so if I can leave taking my mat. leave until the last minute that would be sooo much better for me financially!!! (and my mental health would not suffer so much!!!)
thanks in advance!

no there are no special rules for health care.

they need to do a risk assessment around your duties and ensure that anything in your role that might cause harm to you during your pregnancy is addressed. i.e. manual handling; violent / aggressive patients; cleaning fluids etc etc.

what you could do is "save" your annual leave entitlement between now and when you want to start mat leave and then tag this on first so then you might be able to go off early with mat leave starting as late as possible. you could ten use maternity related sick leave to get a break.

any maternity related sickness after week 36 = immediate start of maternity leave but maternity leave now has to start at the latest your due date, any earlier is up to you and employer to decide.

twinkly, is it not the case that mat-related sick leave after 29 wks will automatically trigger your mat leave?

no - its 36weeks. I was signed off from 26wks, hospitalised at 33wks all on normal nhs sick pay. mat leave fell in at 36wks but by chance baby arrived at 35wk6, so would have done anyway.

ok twinkly, will bow to your experience

AF they changed it recently (oct 2006?) from 29 weeks to 36 weeks.

oo ta

< resolves to dig out new policies at work on monday >