What jobs can a 15 year old do

[Thinkcalmthoughts]

My DD got her national insurance number yesterday she wont be 16 till January.
What kind of jobs are best for a 15 year old ?

[CaptainTurdseye]

Will she have time with gcse studying?

[MilkTwoSugarsThanks]

Tbh given the amount of school work needed for GCSE year I'm not sure any "job" is a good idea. Can she earn money by doing housework and diy (which is how my DS gets his pocket money)?

[mitsi31]

I was thinking maybe a weekend job or will it best for her to hang off till exams are done with

[LIZS]

Cafe work, charity shop? What are her interests?

[mitsi31]

She does get pocket money was just my mum was saying she could now start looking but I'm thinking maybe shes better off waiting till exams are over that way she can study properly

[InsertFunnyUsername]

Local cafe/restaurant work is what I did. A saturday girl for a hairdressers. Is there a local soft play near you?

[Mintjulia]

At 13, I cleaned the pub next door (so no travelling), on a Saturday and Sunday morning between 8&10.
It didn’t interfere with studying or sleeping, but gave me £25 pocket money a week.

[Stayawayfromitsmouth]

I worked as a waitress/ dishwasher or in the local factories/production lines/ greenhouses/ farm work from age 16. Mostly at weekends or holidays.

[AwkwardPaws27]

Does she have a career in mind? Could she do something (paid or voluntary) related to that, ie kennel maid at a vets if she wants to work with animals, volunteering at a care home if she wants to do something healthcare related, helping at a playgroup / kids activity if she wants to go into teaching?

[mitsi31]

She isn't a 100% sure on what she wants to do yet. She does dancing so has two exams for that due shes into fashion etc normal teenage girl stuff lol
We were more focused for her to get good grades but thinking a wee job would be good can earn abit more money gets her out and meeting new folk

Would any salons take a 15 year old on like cleaning up hair etc

[Drabarni]

Mine did too, it makes you feel bloody old when they're your last

They can load and unload on markets, wash up in cafes and restaurants, busk, wash cars, walk dogs, baby sit.

[mitsi31]

Shes my first child and only child at the moment till baby no 2 finally happens
Feel old as it is as shes 15 going on 16 and now possibly looking for work

[Drabarni]

Mine is lucky, knows exactly what they want, and how to get there.
Hopefully some work will come in over Christmas as lots of function work, then it will be summer work after exams.

[Thehouseintheforest]

Completely disagree that they can't work whilst studying GCSE .. load of rubbish unless they are studying 8 hrs every weekend - which quite frankly is unhealthy.

All mine worked from 14. Cleaned the local pub . Delivered newspapers on Saturday morning and EO Sunday. Dog walked after school for a neighbour who worked full time. Cleaned a neighbours chickens out and walked their dogs .
Mostly earned £20-30 a week to start.
More hours in the holiday. I stopped pocket money once they were earning and paid Mobile bills only. All clothes except School Unform was their responsibility from this point..

[CaptainTurdseye]

@thehouseintheforest I Completely disagree that it’s a load of rubbish, the gcse have completely changed and are not the cushy number with coursework that they once were. When I did mine, I had a weekend and evening job but at least 4 of the subjects were 100% course work and done and dusted mostly in class time.

Eldest children also had jobs but not current student. They have too much work to complete.

Now the recommendation is for every lesson, the same time is completed outside of school. I agree with 8 hours straight being unhealthy but 3 hours a day is reasonable in chunks, including homework set

[Icecreamsundaenutella]

My DD has just finished her GCSE’s and worked 8 hours on a Saturday. She managed to fit revision in and found that she was more effective in her revision as she didn’t have time to waste! As well as revision and having a job she still managed to socialise with friends. In the end she passed all her exams and got mostly 6’s,7’s and 8’s. I think having a job did her the world of good because she had something else to focus on instead of revision all the time. Btw, she didn’t enjoy the job she did, but it helped her have a break from school. I would 100% recommend getting a job if she can! Try looking on indeed or smaller companies as bigger retailers tend to take people on who have more experience!

[BackforGood]

Could she babysit for anyone ?
That's what both of my dds did until they were old enough to do their lifeguard training.
Has the advantage of usually being at a time they would be unlikely to be studying, but, in truth, if they wanted to, they could work once the dc are in bed. Also, can say 'no' to requests if they have a week when feeling more under pressure.

I also employed first one, then later another of my nieces to do some cleaning for me when they were 15. Worked well as could be flexible with when in the week they did it, and worked well for me as I could "train them" in what I wanted doing (which not all cleaners are too keen on ). They were then also happy to do other jobs - say tidying out a cupboard or the shed - on an 'ad hoc' basis from that. Again, they could miss a week if feeling under pressure.

[milliefiori]

babysitting
paper round
shop work (our local shops hire 15 yr olds for part time work after school and at weekends)
cleaning
dog walking
pet-sitting

[caringcarer]

Dog walking is good as she will get exercise and fresh air too.
I pay child to walk our two small dogs four times each week, do recycling and put shopping away into correct cupboards and keep own room tidy.

[AthollPlace]

Lots of places don’t hire under 18s due to child protection regulations. So kids nowadays are unlikely to be able to do the jobs kids did 20 years ago. Her best bet is informal work such as babysitting, cleaning, selling crafts on Etsy, etc.

[Butterfly02]

A job shows commitment good for her cv when applying for college apprenticeship etc.. 15 seems an awkward age for work - ds is 15 and struggled lots of companies said they weren't insured to employ under 16s. However he started volunteering at a local charity they saw his commitment and offered him a payed job (he still volunteers too). They understand that at times his study will mean he can't do as many hours, he still fits in his homework, 3 afterschool revision sessions and some extra revision. I think working has given him confidence, independence and a break from his studies. He's learning organisational skills and will have a great reference and something to add to his cv which not all his peers have.

[clary]

Paper round
Football referee
work in cafe or hairdressers

You need to look for small local places, really hard to get a job in Next or McDonalds at 15, but the local cafe will take you. Local pubs maybe obv not serving at the bar but waiting on.

My DC worked through GCSE yr btw, pretty sure coursework didn't make GCSEs a "cushy number" ; dd did a paper round every day from age 13-18 and got great exam results. I doubt if she would have been revising from 6.45-7.30 every morning anyway.

Equally, four hours in a cafe on a Sunday afternoon is not going to stop her doing the work she needs.

[LoveGrowsWhere]

It's difficult to get a job at 15 due to law most companies just won't entertain it. Also the dog walking example above, I did that as a teen years ago, I wouldn't let DS do it aged15 now though as different attitudes & no insurance eg if dog runs in round, bites another dog.

[LoveGrowsWhere]

Not round - road!

[Thinkcalmthoughts]

Thanks lots of helpful advice
Was thinking my future hubby to be has a cousin who owns her own salon was thinking of poping in and seeing if she needs any help with small tasks ie sweeping hair as I'm sure DDs pal did that plus I think helped out in her sister's dog grooming place so theres a few options for my DD just making me feel old now lol xx