In celebration of Mother's Day, we wanted to highlight all the amazing mums who work in our businesses, whether as leaders, general managers, as part of our amazing front and back of house teams or supporting from our head office.

We caught up with Ella, General Manager of the Talbot - one of our Vintage Inns, to hear all about her experiences returning to work after becoming a mum to Aurora. Read below to hear how she managed the return from maternity leave and how we she juggles both motherhood and being a general manager...

How long have you been at work since returning from maternity leave?

I have been back since November fully (I did 10 KIT days in October which was SO useful). So much has changed in 13 months! I had some wonderful help from Alice Walker who showed me the ropes and helped me settle straight back in!

How did you find the transition to working mum - how have your team supported you with this?

The transition was daunting – it is just me and Aurora and I had spent all day every day with her but after getting back into the swing of things my confidence is high again and I truly do appreciate every day I get to spend with my daughter.

The team I have, have been wonderful. They all see Aurora most days and they can see how well she is doing (now tottering around asking them for Fruit Shoots!). My team are great at understanding that my time off is devoted to quality time with Aurora – and I can see that they have come such a long way themselves and they should be so proud as, as much as I hate to admit, they don’t need me as much as they thought they did! My team do me proud every day and I can’t wait to see where our journey leads for all of them!

What do you think the best parts of being a working mum at Mitchells & Butlers are?

The best parts of being a mum while working for M&B is the flexibility. If you work in hospitality, it is in your blood and it’s something that never leaves you! M&B supported me through my pregnancy and maternity and it is a pleasure to come back to a job that I thoroughly enjoy! I may not have weekends off – but I have two days in the week where actually play centres or parks are quieter for our adventures!

What are your favourite parts of motherhood so far?

My favourite parts of motherhood – where to begin!? Aurora is one in a million (I know we all say this) but she truly is. I adore my daughter and it’s so nice for her to see me so happy not just with her but with my colleagues.

Do you have any top tips for other working mums?

Do what makes you happy. It’s not easy to be a working mum or a single working mum but you can do it. Your child will see you doing the best you can for them and they will never stop respecting you for working hard to make sure that they have the best start in life. Enjoy every moment and cherish the time you have with them, we might not have every weekend off but our time with them is our weekend – the best part of the week!

How will you celebrating Mother’s Day this year to make sure that you get some special time with your daughter, as well as delivering a brilliant day for our guests?

This year I am going to be working Mother’s Day, I am very lucky as my Mum (Lala!) will be having the cheeky monkey. But I will make sure that on our days off after, we will do something special together. I wish all the working Mums a wonderful Mother’s day and just remember yours will be when you make it! 

Ella's Area Manager, Nick, has also been impressed with how Ella has handled returning to being a General Manager...

"Since Ella returned from maternity leave, she has been a breath of fresh air with her can do attitude and positive energy radiating at all times. Being a brilliant mum and a brilliant GM are two very hard jobs, and Ella manages to do both! As an area manager, it is a pleasure to manage someone like Ella, and there's the added bonus of having the lovely Aurora join us for occasional business meetings!"