Derby Homes, the organisation that manages and maintains the city’s council houses has piloted an initiative aimed at supporting mums returning to work.

Whilst there are a range of advanced policies and procedures in place which provide the statutory maternity leave plus extended leave options together with flexible working arrangements; the organisation realises that supporting women on maternity leave is not always easy to do.

Feedback from female employees returning from maternity leave strongly suggests that being away from the workplace is isolating and the longer the time off the worse this gets. Returning to work brings with it a whole lot of mixed feelings. These range from worrying about baby care to feeling anxious about being able to fit back into work and being an effective member of the workforce. Just walking through the door is an ordeal for some.

During 2007, out of a workforce of 290 there were nine female employees on maternity leave. Derby Homes has called them the 2007 Yummy Mummies! In December all of the mummies were invited along with their babies to a network session held at a Sure Start Nursery in Austin.During the session information was provided about local nurseries and child care facilities, details of Derby Homes’ work life balance policies and child care voucher scheme. More importantly, it was an opportunity to explain their rights as a parent and for them to share their experiences with colleagues in the same situation.

A 45 minute presentation explaining recent changes at Derby Homes gave mums their first taste of what work might feel like and demonstrated the organisation’s commitment to following this support through to their return.Mums were also offered the opportunity to have a professional photograph taken of their new baby.

The event was attended by Derby Homes’ Chief Executive Phil Davies, who took the opportunity to share his thoughts on being a dad and his understanding of the pressures faced by new parents. Maria Murphy, Director also offered first hand experience of being a working mum and having to balance the board room with the school run. As a result of the positive feedback received, a repeat event is being planned for 2008 - with the help of some of Derby Homes’ 2007 yummy mummies.