Just a thought - training to be NCT AN teacher, Anyone know about it?

[RanToTheHills]

interested to explore this as poss future career thread. wondering what's involved, cost of course, involvement with NCT, what it pays etc etc.
Appreciate any info from those who've done it. Thanks!

[foundintranslation]

I think harpsichordcarrier is doing this. Keep it bumped for her!

[RanToTheHills]

thanks, will shamelessly bump then!
Harpsi, are you there??

[SueW]

I am training to be an antenatal teacher with NCT. I have finished bar the last few essays (I hate paperwork!)

It's a Level 2 diploma with Uni of Bedfrodshire (used to be uni of luton).

It takes about 2.5 year minimum and I can't rmemeber what the maximum is but I have taken just over 4 years so far.

The initial cost is around £2.5k of which you pay 20%. This is taken in quarterly payments. If you take longer than 2.5 years to train, the payments reduce to cover the cost of tutorials only. You are required to teach for the NCT for a minimum of three years after qualifying.

[SueW]

You normally attend tutorials once a month (not usually August) but if you live overseas there is a diff arrangement involving weekends.

There are approx (max?) 12 people in a tutorial group.

Involvement with NCT. There isn't a requirement to volunteer in your local branch BUT:

• it's polite since they'll be funding 80% of your training costs

• it really helps the branch if you can do something, even something small because there is always too much to do and too few people

• it is useful to be involved with the branch, attneding meetings so that you know what's going on. You will also be seen as a rep of your local branch by the midwives and other HPs you meet so you should be clued up. (Not sure if it a requirement of training to attend 4 committtee meetings/year)

Pay. Ha, ha. Don't fall off your chair. I'll post in a tick when I have checked

[RanToTheHills]

oh thanks, are you enjoying it (bar that paperwork!)?
also, how much involvmt do you need to have with the NCT prior to enrolling? Do you have to be approved/sponsored by the local branch or sth?
And how much will you earn? I know I paid roughly £100 to do my antenatal course some yrs ago but no idea how much of that went to the teacher! Not after making a fortune, but wd be useful to help towards the bills.

[SueW]

You will have to teach three courses as part of your training. The first you receive no payment for. The second and third are paid at student rate which is currently £6.13 per hour.

A newly qualified teacher is paid £8.39/hour.

These are the official figures set by NCT's UK Office. Some teachers are paid more; some are paid significantly more.

Anything else?

[SueW]

Oh and pay is under discussion at the moment but all that should be sorted out in the next few months.

[SueW]

I LOVE the teaching.

The first class starts with six couples who don't know each other and the only thing they seem to have in common is that they are all expecting a baby around the same time and then... I have just been invited to the joint first birthday party of my second set of parents who are still all meeting up for bbqs, mums meet pretty much every week, etc.

And I love the tutorials. It's great Me-Time every month. I think that's why I'm dragging my feet over qualifying!!

[RanToTheHills]

great help, thanks! quite low starting rate, isn't it? Quite actually, still I guess most people do it out of interest/fits round kids etc? Sorry if i was asking too many questions!

[RanToTheHills]

i meant particularly after all that training. Ex-teacher myself and hourly rate was generally higher, still had to cover childcare tho.

[SueW]

You do not have to have been involved beforehand but you do have to be a member to start training and you have to continue to be a member whilst you train/teach for NCT. The non-involvement has caused some conflict within NCT branches as volunteers raise money to train someone they don't know iyswim.

I forgot to mention there are two weekend workshops you have to go on during the course; one quite near the beginning and one halfway through at which you take an exam of '30 short questions' which tests your medical knowledge of pregnancy and birth.

[SueW]

Ask as many questions as you like - I am happy to answer

[RanToTheHills]

oh, well am still a member (i think,), not particularly involved locally as new to area. Is it v competitive to get a place on the course?

[SueW]

I'm not sure how difficult to get on but you may have to wait for a space to come up in a tutorial group, dpeending on where you live and how far you are prepared to travel. Places come up all year round - there's not one intake - and groups are made up of people like me who have been training forever, middle-termers and we had some complete newbies this month.

I travel from Nottingham to Stafford for my tutorials (46 miles, takes me a bit over an hour). My tutes are 10.30am-3pm so pretty good for when my DD is at school (8.40am - 4pm)

[MuddlingThru]

£6.13/£8.39 per hour is the official minimum hourly rate that any branch can pay teachers. Currently rates vary by branch. Our branch pays students £8.39, newly qualified £13.98. Our most experienced teacher on the top band gets £25.75/hr. I don't think our branch is unrepresentative (based in the South).
However as SueW mentions it will be changing over the next few months as Head Office will be taking over setting the rates - I don't know exactly how this will affect the rates but can't imagine that many teachers out there will be willing to accept a pay cut.

[samnbabes]

As an NCT branch committee member, just to add a two-penniworth - all our trainees have had SOME sort of branch invovlement - but in some cases, that's just turning up at a couple of committee meetings and saying they fancy doing it! We do tend to ask them to provide updates for the branch magazine, and they always turn out for fundraising events. The branch has to agree to sponsor you (as we raise money to fund you) - but I've never personally heard of a branch saying no to anyone - think everyone's generally v keen to have more teachers! From my understanding of talking to those training, it is quite hard work - don't think that it's exactly easy money! But hugely, hugely rewarding.

[mummydear]

Being an Ex chair of a NCT Branch I can say that Branches are not allowed to turn away pople if they want to train, even if the branch have no money the money will be found from somewhere , says Head Office.

I do agree that in the past there has benne alot of conflict where people out of the blue turn up and want to be trained, as some branches find it quite hard to rasie funds.

I had a trainee in my barcnh who never came to meetings, failed to kepp us updated , failed to trun up at AGM or give written update on progress and never turned up at fiund rasing events, that really got theback up from the branch.

Just be willing to help out a little bit, as atrainee you are not expected to take on a commitee role as you will have enough to do with the training but a little input into the branch never goes a miss even if its just helping out at a good as new sale or updated branch regulary as to how your training is going.

You will never become rich but it is regarding , just think about why you want to do it , if its just for the money as its fits rounds child care please think again.

Good luck with your decision.

Sorry about typos ...very tired .

[RanToTheHills]

thx - I understand,hardly seems fair for a complete stranger to turn up expecting to be put thro the course courtesy of a charity. OTOH suppose the relatively low hrly paymt is in part to cover the costs of the training someone's been thro'.
I do need to think about it -whether I have the time and sufficient interest. I've done so many courses post-university, not sure i've got the appetite for yet another but this may change if i decide to give up work.

[CarolinaMoon]

Rantothehills, as far as the 'career' aspect goes, it's worth remembering that most NCT classes can only happen in the evening. You might have free time during the day, but the clients won't (esp partners), if you are in a reasonably affluent area.

OTOH, if you have a dp at home in the evenings to look after the kids, you won't have to stress about childcare.

We have one teacher who teaches two courses a week, in parallel, and I think you'd be hard pushed to teach more than that. But as you can imagine, she isn't making a huge amount of money out of it.

[CarolinaMoon]

I bet it is!

She teaches the same sessions to both classes each week iykwim, so she isn't getting ahead of herself.

She is a pretty energetic person though - most of our teachers do one course at a time and often have a few weeks' break in between.

[SueW]

A teacher who teaches her three courses during training and for three years afterwards in our area easily 'repays' the cost of her training to NCT.

However this whole process will take a minimum of 5.5 years - longer than many volunteers are involved with a branch and so they may not see the work a trainee has done before training or the many classes she may go onto teach in the future.

NCT overall recognises the importance of training more specialist workers (breastfeeding counsellors, teachers and postnatal leaders) because overall the charity is in for the longhaul, iyswim.

[alexsmum]

suew i met one of my best friends through my nct ante-natal class.our sons are now 6! andwe see each other every week

i would like to do this too.

[SueW]

For info on training send an email to

[email protected]

I just pulled this off the NCT Update website:

Become an Antenatal Teacher

In order to be considered for the NCT's Antenatal Teacher Training Programme, you need to fulfil the following criteria:

• You must have given birth to at least one baby. 'Giving birth' includes a normal vaginal birth, a forceps or ventouse delivery, or a caesarean birth. The baby need not necessarily have lived. Occasionally, exceptions to this criterion are made. If you have not given birth to a baby and want to be considered for NCT Antenatal Teacher Training, you need to write to: The Antenatal Tutor Co-ordinators, C/o Secretary to Teachers' Panel, The National Childbirth Trust, Alexandra House, Oldham Terrace, Acton, London W3 6NH explaining why you think you should be considered for training.
  
  
• You must be, or become, a member of the National Childbirth Trust.

[SueW]

alexsmum. I love hearing about long-term friends made through classes. For a lot of people that's the reason they give for going - wanting to meet others in the same situation.