Has anyone been able to have the career they want AND be the sort of mum you want to be?

[StJamesInfirmary]

I had a great career in teaching, had 2 kids and felt I couldn't parent or teach to my best while the other was going on. So I left teaching. Ive been working in admin for 2 years, bored out of my mind now and want to go back to the career I love. I went to see a school yesterday and considering applying but I just can't see how I'd make it fit with being the type of parent I want to be as my kids would be in wrap around care. I'm now looking at supply work but have heard of people on supply for years, unable to get permanent work and I worry I'll end up like that.

My kids are 5 and 6. Is anyone on the other side of this and prepared to share some wisdom?

How about teaching PT? Worked for us as only some days needed wraparound care, or breakfast and after school club, he wfh so we could juggle it.

I dropped DC off at 8am, came home from work at 6pm so he would do pick up.

I worked part time in a professional role. It was tough and my career but most of all my pension suffered. I had gaps where my DH worked away and with no family support nearby i had to stop working. I went full time when my youngest was 12. If I had my time again I would have probably retrained and worked from home and not had gaps because they mean I’m going to have to work until I’m 67.

I'm a teacher with one child who's now 12. I remember feeling frustrated when she was 5-9 and that I was on the mummy track. I felt restricted by breakfast club and after school club (she did like wraparound on the whole though: ASC's the modern equivalent of 'playing out' if it's well run).

Now she's settled into year 7 I've moved into a middle management role and am finding a number of sideways moves I can do to develop my skills.

Quite a lot of teachers have their kids in the secondary they teach in (I do) and this, while bringing some challenges, does mean you can avoid that abrupt transition at 11.

You could use supply strategically to find a humane school and nice wraparound?

I've generally worked 0.8 apart from a couple of hellish years of FT when I worked 7 days a week in termtime and argued constantly with DH!

Supply will help you set boundaries around your time. That's important if you're going to attempt any kind of pt work in a school.