Maternity leave

During paid maternity leave

You'll continue to build up your pension during paid maternity leave.  

Employer contributions from the council will be based on your earnings before you went on leave. Your contributions will be based on your earnings during your leave, which may be lower than your usual payments. 

During unpaid maternity leave 

All pension contributions stop from you and the council during any period of unpaid maternity leave.   

Paying towards lost pension contributions 

If you’re on the local government pension scheme (LGPS), you can choose to pay towards lost pension contributions for any unpaid part of your maternity leave.   

Under this scheme, you’ll pay for one-third of your lost pension contributions and the council pays the rest. 

When you return to work, the Essex Pension Fund will write to you advising that you have the opportunity to pay towards your lost pension contributions. If you wish to do this, you will need to complete part C of the ML1 form (DOCX, 69KB) to advise Payroll. Payroll will then calculate your lost pension contributions and provide you with a letter confirming the details and advising you of the next steps. 

You can find out more about how to pay your lost pension contributions in the returning to work information.