Your workplace pension still belongs to you. If you do not carry on paying into the scheme, the money will remain invested and you’ll get a pension when you reach the scheme’s pension age.

You can join another workplace pension scheme if you get a new job.

If you move jobs but pay into an old pension, you may not get some of that pension’s benefits - check if they’re only available to current workers.

If you were in a defined benefit pension scheme for less than 2 years, you might be able to either:

The amount you contribute is based on your actual pay during this time, but your employer pays contributions based on the salary you would have received if you were not on leave.

You and your employer will continue to make pension contributions if you’re getting paid during maternity leave.

If you’re not getting paid, your employer still has to make pension contributions in the first 26 weeks of your leave (‘Ordinary Maternity Leave’). They have to carry on making contributions

afterwards if it’s in your contract. Check your employer’s maternity policy.

You may be able to make contributions if you want to - check with your employer or the pension scheme provider.

You may be able to carry on contributing to your workplace pension - ask the scheme provider.

You could use the National Employment Saving Trust (NEST) - a workplace pension scheme that working self-employed people or sole directors of limited companies can use.