It pays to save if you plan to start a family

FINDING out you're having a baby can be a joyous time, but it can also bring anxiety - particularly from a financial point of view.

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Not only does adding a new member to the family incur extra expenses, it also means the mother is likely to be on maternity leave from work for an extended period, which means there'll be much less money coming in.

Jackie Spencer from the Money and Pensions Service, a government-sponsored body which runs MoneyHelper to provide free and impartial financial guidance, explains that Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) is available to women who earn at least £125 a week and have worked for their employer continuously for at least 26 weeks.

SMP is 90% of your average weekly earnings before tax for the first six weeks, followed by either £187.18 or 90% of your average weekly earnings whichever is lower - for the remaining 33 weeks.

In addition, employers may offer enhanced maternity pay alongside SMP. Self-employed women may get up to 39 weeks Maternity Allowance instead of SMP, at a standard rate of £139.58 a week.

Maternity Action’s 2025 Cost of Living on Maternity Leave survey of 1,176 pregnant women and new mothers found 17% of respondents struggled ‘a lot’ to buy the things they needed, and 55% borrowed money or used credit cards to financially support themselves while on maternity leave, resulting in debt.

“In the UK the majority of employees are dependent on money provided by the government to support themselves during their maternity leave.” says Judith Dennis, head of policy at Maternity Action. “Our research shows women are being pushed into poverty as a result.”