A colleague’s last week before maternity leave is one of the happiest send-offs an office gets to give. There is a cake, a card that goes round every desk, and a gift from the team — and the easy answer is baby clothes, because baby clothes are simple to buy and everyone agrees on them.
Baby clothes are lovely, and there will be a great many of them. A team gift can do something the relatives’ presents will not: it can be for her — the colleague who is stepping away from a job she is good at, for a few months, to do something much bigger.
Two things to find out first
How she feels about a celebration. Some people love an office baby shower with games and a cake; others would much rather a quiet lunch and a card. Ask a close colleague, not her, and plan to match.
When her last day really is. Leave dates move. Plan the send-off for early in her final fortnight rather than the last day, so nothing is missed if her plans change.
For her, for the baby, or for both
| For her | For the baby | For both |
|---|---|---|
| Something for her comfort in the months ahead | Clothes two sizes up | A book of good wishes from the team |
| A good bottle, a proper cushion, snacks she loves | Soft books with pictures | Printed photographs she can put by the cot |
| A day that is hers, before the leave starts | A blanket that washes well | A deck of cards, one from each colleague |
The best team gifts usually sit in the right-hand column: they celebrate the baby and still carry the office’s affection for her.
Seven gifts that work
1. A book of good wishes from the team
Every colleague writes one line — a wish, a piece of cheerful advice, a joke from the team’s year — set beside photographs from office lunches, outings and the day she closed that big deal. It is a gift about her, from the people who work with her, and it becomes part of the baby’s first year too. An 8- or 12-page magazine starts at ₹499. How to collect messages for a group gift →
2. A deck of the whole team
One card per colleague, each with a photograph and a line, and the spare cards for the office itself: 27 cards at ₹999, or 52 at ₹1,699 for a large department. Pocket-sized, in a printed box — something to pick up and smile at during the long, quiet night feeds. Card decks as a group gift →
3. Comfort for the months ahead
A good insulated bottle, a supportive cushion, a soft throw, a box of the snacks she keeps in her desk drawer. Not glamorous, used every day, and very welcome.
4. Clothes two sizes up
If the team wants to give something for the baby, skip the newborn size — the baby will be out of it in weeks, and the relatives will have covered it. Six to twelve months is the size everyone forgets. Gifts for a new baby →
5. Printed photographs for the nursery
Thirty polaroid-style prints — the team, the office, her favourite people — each with a caption, from ₹270. They go up by the cot, on the fridge or in a card, and they remind her that the team is cheering her on. Custom polaroid prints →
6. A day that is hers
A spa voucher, a lunch at her favourite restaurant, or simply a long, relaxed team lunch in her last week where nobody mentions work. The last few weeks before a baby are busy; a planned treat is a gift in itself.
7. A promise for later
“We’ll make the baby’s first-year book when you’re ready.” Put a date on it — six months in, say — and then actually do it, with photographs she sends when she has a moment.
Organising it as a team
One person runs it. They collect the wishes, the photographs and the money, and they place the order.
Collect the money last, once the gift is chosen and the price is known, and keep contributions small and equal. How to split a group gift fairly →
Include colleagues who work remotely. A shared document for wishes and a folder for photographs lets everyone take part, wherever they sit.
Sign one card, not twenty. A single card from the whole team, passed round every desk, is part of the ritual.
What to write in the card
The card goes round every desk, and most people freeze at it. A few lines that work:
- “Congratulations! The team will be fine — mostly. Enjoy every minute.”
- “Thank you for [the project, the launch, the terrible Monday you rescued]. Now go and rest.”
- “We can’t wait to meet the newest member of the team — on a video call, whenever you’re ready.”
- “Sending you all the good sleep we are not going to get this quarter without you.”
Warm, light and specific beats long. The book of wishes can carry the longer messages.
If the team is large
A department of forty cannot each buy something. One organiser, one collection, one main gift — the book or the deck — plus the card everyone signs. If smaller groups want to add something of their own, they can, but the shared gift should be the one that carries everybody’s name.
For a colleague going on paternity leave
Where a colleague takes paternity leave, the same send-off works: the team book, the deck, the clothes two sizes up. Mark it the same way you would for a colleague going on maternity leave — the congratulations are the point, and an equal send-off is a kind message to the whole team.
Timing
Plan the send-off for early in her last fortnight. If you are having something printed, count back from that date: order by Friday and it is designed, proofed, printed and dispatched on the coming Monday, provided you approve the proof when it arrives; from order to doorstep is 5 to 14 days. Two to three weeks ahead is comfortable, because collecting wishes from a team always takes longer than planned.
If her last day moves earlier, the gift can simply go to her home address instead — we deliver to any serviceable pin code in India for a flat ₹70.
If she is working from home by then
Plenty of people work remotely in their last weeks before leave. The send-off still happens: the gift goes to her home address, the team gathers on a video call to watch her open it, and someone takes a screenshot of the whole grid of faces — which makes a lovely last page for the team book, printed later.
When she comes back
The return from maternity leave is its own small occasion. A welcome-back card, her desk tidied, and a photograph of the baby pinned up — if she wants that — makes the first morning back much easier.
What to avoid
Assumptions about the baby. Skip anything that guesses a gender or a name unless she has shared it.
Unsolicited advice. A book of wishes should be wishes. Parenting advice from colleagues is better left out.
Anything bulky. She has to carry it home, often on her last day.
Work. No handover notes in the card, and no “can’t wait to have you back” pressure. The message is congratulations.
Frequently asked
What is a good gift for a colleague going on maternity leave? A book or card deck of good wishes from the team, something for her comfort, or clothes two sizes up for the baby — ideally one gift for her and one small thing for the baby.
Should the office give a gift for the baby or for her? Both work. A gift that includes the team’s wishes feels most personal; clothes and toys will arrive from everyone else.
How much should each colleague put in? A small, equal amount from everyone. A team book or deck costs little per person once it is shared across a department.
What if she would rather not have a celebration? Keep it small: a card from everyone and one gift handed over quietly, with no games or speeches. The good wishes matter; the party is optional.
Should the send-off be on her last day? Better early in her last fortnight, so a change of dates cannot catch the team out and she is not juggling handovers during her own celebration.
Part of our office gifting etiquette guide. See also: office farewell gift ideas and gifts for a work best friend.
From the whole team: Photo magazines from ₹499 · All 12 keepsakes