Do I qualify for maternity allowance?

upsizer

Hello
Does anyone have any experience of claiming maternity allowance?
According to the basic criteria, I qualify for MA and my employer has already given me the form to say that I don't qualify for SMP as my earnings are not high enough, so it seems fairly straightforwrd.
However, I had a thought earlier about wether or not I need to have paid national insurance recently to be able to receive MA. I haven't paid NI in my current employment of two years for the same reason that I don't qualify for SMP - i.e I don't earn enough. I've searched websites but can't find much info about it. I know that if you're self employed you have to show that you have paid some form of NI, but does that apply to an employed person too?
I phoned JobcentrePlus who were useless and basically quoted info from their website which I'd already read.
I'd just like to know if I can expect to get anything!
Thanks
Upsizer

Becles

If you earn over £30 a week and have been employed for at least 26 weeks out of the last 66 weeks, you are entitled to MA as far as I know.

http://www.dwp.gov.uk/publications/specialist-guides/technical-guidance/ni17a-a-guide-to-maternity/maternity-allowance-ma/#maelig