I don't have to go back as soon as I thought

[Emma58]

I have finally dug out my maternity pack -after putting it off for months and.... it says,

''For your information, the final day of paid Maternity leave will be 39 weeks after your maternity leave commenced i.e 14th december 2008.

We will not write to you before the end of your Maternity leave period, to ask when the baby was born and whether you intend to return after your Maternity period. So if you intend to return to work on 15th March 2009 which is the end of you full Maternity leave entiitlement (52 weeks) you will NOT be required to give any further notification''

I thought I had to go back at the beginning of the next term in September.

Am i right in thinking now I can take longer?? I really, really don't want to go back yet.

I was about to send them a letter asking if i could extend my leave or return part time only. Any advice would be really grateful I find it all a bit confusing.

 

[chickadee1976]

Looks like December is the earliest you have to go back.

If you keep taking leave from December to MArch you will not recieve any Maternity alowance payments.

Also you still accrue holidays when you are on Maternity leave so may be able to extend for another couple of weks (make sure you can carry holidays over to the next year)

I think you are entitled to ask to return to work part time, but your employer does not have to accept

 

[Emma58]

I don't know whether I still accrue holidays as I work at a secondary school and obviously we get loads of holidays

I am quite happy to return in January. If my paid leave ends in December then i would be off over Christmas then would return in the January term.

I thought I had to return in September because I will have had 6 months Maternity leave by then.

I'm not going back if I don't have to though

 

[kalia]

Everyone is entitled to 52 weeks maternity leave. If you qualify for SMP it is payable for 39 weeks unless you decide to return before this.

I'm a teacher too. I think (but this could be very wrong!) that we continue to accrue holidays during the 39 weeks but not in the 13 weeks after that. For us this means whether we are paid for the holidays after we return - most importantly the summer holidays which is the bulk of our entitlement and a long time to not be paid! I am almost certain that if you go back January as you have said you would prefer to you would still get paid at Easter and summer.

Remember that you decide when you go back, not anyone else. You don't have to go back at the start of a term. Because I knew I was pregnant I spent the year deciding when felt like a nice time to return and I have decided on 24th November. This works well for me as a Primary School French specialist as we write to Santa in French that week (so that there is time for the letters to get to Canada and replies to come back) and then do Christmas activities until the holidays. Socially it's a good time as well as there are lots of nights out. I'll go back for 4 easy weeks then have a 2 week holiday. And it means I'd get a months full pay in time for the sales