6 Things Every New Mum Should Know Before Returning from Maternity Leave

To make work life balance more achievable, mitigate childcare costs and negotiate flexibility that actually work for you, there are so many things to consider before returning to work – from a HR and maternity rights perspective.

MaterniTeach created a comprehensive handbook called the Ultimate Mums Return to Work Hackbook with details on everything returning mums need to know.

Some of the considerations are

Unfortunately, many employers either don’t understand their obligations towards working parents, or simply neglect their duties – poorly managed maternity transitions cost UK businesses around £280 million a year.

Honestly, society hasn’t evolved to support working mums properly. So, working mums are turning to charities, blogs, mums groups and social media for answers.

At MaterniTeach, we decided to meet mums where they are, and bring verified, expert-backed information directly to them. Working with HR and employment law experts, we spent months unpacking the nuances of UK maternity workplaces practices – not just what the law says, but what it actually means for real mums in real jobs.

We found that the gap between what mums are entitled to, their obligations and what they actually know and practice is enormous. A lot of it comes down to misconceptions: things mums believe that simply aren’t true, and things they don’t believe are possible but absolutely are.

Here are 6 things every new mum should know before returning to work from maternity leave.

1. Negotiate a Phased Return to Work

A phased return is an adjustment period agreed between you and your employer to help you settle in and slowly re-orient yourself with your workplace and responsibilities. It is a temporary arrangement.

Why you need this: Jumping straight into a regular work schedule can be brutal. Early starts after sleep deprived nights, commuting, pumping, separation from your baby, cognitive demands, general exhaustion and mental health challenges. Ease yourself in with a reduced hours or days over a 6-12 week period, to sustainably ramp up.

Here are some flexible working options you can use to create a phased return:

● Part-time (reduced hours or days, e.g. 3 days/week)
● Compressed hours (full-time hours worked over fewer days, e.g. 4 x 9.5-hour days)
● Flexible start and finish times (e.g. 7am-3pm instead of 9am-5pm)
● Job sharing (splitting one full-time role between two people)
● Hybrid working (mix of office and home working, e.g. 2-3 days office, remainder home)
● Fully remote working (working from home permanently)
● Term-time only working (working during school terms with unpaid leave during holidays)
● Annualised hours (total hours averaged over the year, allowing flexibility week-to-week)
● Using accrued annual leave and bank holidays
● Flexi-time (choose your own hours within agreed core times)

2. You Can Request Flexible Working From Day One of
Your Job

You can formally request flexible working from day one of employment. So if you’re returning from maternity leave to a new job, you’re entitled to make a request and your employer must consider it.

You’re also entitled to make 2 formal requests per year.

Legal tip: Your employer can only refuse on 8 specific statutory business grounds. While these grounds can be interpreted quite broadly (which means most businesses can justify refusals under them), they do force your employer to justify their rejection in writing. They can’t just say “we don’t do that” or “it sets a precedent” – that could open them up to discrimination claims.

Additionally, employers have a legal obligation to consider ALL flexible working requests properly.
They must respond within 2 months of receiving your request. Your employer can request an extension to consider your flexible working request but this would need to be mutually agreed on by you and your employer.

3. Your Employer Should Provide Breastfeeding
Accommodations

What most mums don’t know: If you’re breastfeeding, your employer is legally required to assess the risks and respond. In practice, the guidelines recommend providing a private space to express milk (not toilets), somewhere to store it (such as a fridge), and reasonable breaks to express. Failure to do so may constitute indirect sex discrimination.

Legal tip: This only kicks in if you notify them in writing that you’re breastfeeding. Once you notify them in writing, they are legally required to conduct a breastfeeding risk assessment – this is separate from your pregnancy risk assessment and is required under Health and Safety regulations.

4. Use Accrued Annual Leave & Bank Holidays to Create
Short Work Weeks instead

What most mums don’t know: Your statutory annual leave continues to build up during your ENTIRE maternity leave. You accrue bank holidays too during maternity leave.

Mum’s secret: If your employer won’t let you work part-time or offer you the phased return you need, having your accrued leave to fall back on is gold.

Use your accrued annual leave to book one day off per week for as long as you can. For example, work Monday-Thursday and use Friday as annual leave for several months. This creates short work weeks (eg. 3 or 4 days instead of 5) which makes the transition far more manageable. Depending on how much leave you’ve accrued, you could maintain 4-day weeks for 3-6 months or longer.

Important consideration: Depending on company policy, employees who return from maternity leave may be required to use their annual leave within the calendar year, based on your return date.

5. Negotiate Flexibility Around Childcare Drop-off and
Pick-ups

What new mums might not consider: Most childcare providers open around 7 and close around 6 (give or take 30 minutes). This means, depending on how far away your child’s nursery is to your workplace, dropping off your child at nursery and picking them up before the nursery closes, may require you to arrive at your workplace later than expected, or leave earlier than your formal contractual hours.

Legal tip: Include a flexi-time request in your formal flexible working application, clearly mentioning

• Your childcare provider’s opening and closing times
• Your commuting time
• The new hours/flexibility you’re proposing for starting and closing for the day (or arriving to
  your workplace).
  

What new mums might not consider: Most childcare providers open around 7 and close around 6 (give or take 30 minutes). This means, depending on how far away your child’s nursery is to your workplace, dropping off your child at nursery and picking them up before the nursery closes, may require you to arrive at your workplace later than expected, or leave earlier than your formal contractual hours.

If you do not have an agreement in writing with your manager/employer, and nursery drop-offs and picks make you routinely late to work and force you to leave early, an insensitive employer with poor practices can penalise you for failing to keep to your contractual working hours as this is a breach of contract.

6. Request Adjusted Performance Targets Before Your
Return

The problem: Many women go part-time or start compressed hours but discover they’re still being
judged against full-time performance targets. Or they return after 3-12 months away and are immediately put into performance reviews as if they never left. This sets you up to fail.

Your performance review period should be adjusted to reflect your actual time worked. Objectives
should be recalibrated, bonuses should be pro-rated, and promotion criteria should not penalise you for time you were legally entitled to take.

If your review suggests you haven’t met targets without any adjustment for your maternity leave, that
is potentially discriminatory. You don’t have to accept it quietly. Ask for clarification in writing and raise a formal concern if the numbers don’t stack up.

It’s also wise to request a reduced workload, ask for support in the form of training or a buddy, and
document everything in writing in case you need to rely on it later.

Your Next Step
Over 4 million people have viewed our free content online and over 400 parents have downloaded
our resources. It’s time to transform how workplaces and parents work together, for good.
If you want to go deeper with 19 HR verified hacks, a full return-to-work timeline, email templates,
and a complimentary 15-minute coaching call — our full Return to Work Hackbook is available for just £14 at materniteach.co.uk.

About the author

Jacqueline Ajayi is the Founder of MaterniTeach – go-to provider for comprehensive workplace maternity resources for both mums and businesses, centred around a social-first delivery.

Some of these tips are based on English law only. Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland have different entitlements.
The information in this article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
Employment law is subject to change – always seek independent legal advice for your specific
circumstances.