Maternity Leave Annual Leave Accrual Calculator

What The Accrual Result Means

Employees continue to build up holiday during statutory maternity leave. This calculator turns an annual holiday entitlement into an estimated amount built up across the maternity leave period. It also separates bank holidays, because contracts are not all written the same way. Some contracts say 28 days including bank holidays. Others give a number of annual leave days plus bank holidays. That wording changes the arithmetic.

Use the result as a planning figure for a return-to-work discussion, not as a final decision on rights, validity, carry-over or pay. Employment contracts, staff handbooks, leave-year dates, part-time patterns and local HR policies can affect how the figure is handled. If the result will affect pay, holiday carry-over, dismissal, settlement, grievance or tribunal deadlines, get a proper employment advice check.

Formula Method

The formula treats maternity leave length as a share of a 52-week leave year. That is a clear planning method for regular day-based entitlement. It may not be enough for irregular-hours workers, annualised hours, workers changing hours, or a leave period that crosses two different holiday years. If those points apply, split the period and calculate each part separately.

Bank Holidays During Maternity Leave

Bank holidays are the point most likely to cause confusion. If the contract says the annual entitlement is 28 days including bank holidays, entering 28 days and leaving bank holidays as included avoids double-counting. If the contract says, for example, 25 days plus bank holidays, choose the extra bank-holiday option and enter the number of bank holidays that fall during the maternity leave period.

Part-time employees need extra care. Some employers pro-rate bank holidays and include them in a single annual allowance. Others record bank holidays separately. The calculator can show the arithmetic, but it cannot decide whether the employer’s policy is lawful or whether a particular bank holiday should be credited. Compare the result with the contract wording and written policy before raising a query.

Worked Accrual Examples

Return-To-Work Holiday Checklist

Holiday usually cannot be taken at the same time as maternity leave, so the practical question is timing. Some employees add holiday to the end of maternity leave before returning. Others use holiday before leave starts or carry it into the next holiday year when it could not be taken. If the employment is ending, holiday pay on termination is a separate question and should be calculated from the final balance and the worker’s pay rules.

Country And Source Limits

The calculator is written for UK users and uses UK statutory maternity leave concepts. GOV.UK and Acas provide the main Great Britain source material used here. Northern Ireland has its own public guidance through nidirect and the Labour Relations Agency, so workers and employers in Northern Ireland should check that local route as well. The arithmetic is similar, but source wording and routes to advice can differ.

This page does not decide whether a worker is eligible for statutory maternity leave, whether maternity pay is due, whether a policy is discriminatory, or whether a carry-over refusal is lawful. It also does not replace union, Acas, Labour Relations Agency, solicitor or HR advice. It is a transparent day-count estimate for planning and discussion.

FAQs