to ask what jobs you do that fit in well with school hours?

[Cakebaker35]

Came up in conversation this week with a group of friends about what jobs work well around school hours etc, am genuinely interested to know what you all do that works well around your family?

A bit of context, I'm currently a SAHM which I really enjoy but plan to go back to work once DD goes to school. However previous career is totally incompatible with family life due to long hours/international travel and frankly I just don't want to do what I used to do anymore.

The friends I was talking to all said they think the only way is to work for yourself. Do you think this is true?

There's a freelance/self employed board on MN for posters who are interested... Not the busiest board on the block but knowledgeable posters and a good source of info from old threads.

Surely most jobs are compatible - it's just that not all employers are flexible or flexible enough.

I work 21 hrs a week as a shop supervisor.

I work 6 - 10 in the evenings (and 1 day at 1 - 6 when my mum collects DC's from school) I can do school drop offs and pick ups and be at home in the day for housework and home stuff.

I've done these hours for 11 years now and I'd love to have hours in the day. I miss being at home in the evening.

I struck lucky and work 10am - 3pm doing admin for a computer repair firm. I work half a mile from the DCs school therefore do pick up and drop offs and deal with the cliquey playground antics twice daily and I manage to get to school plays / assemblies etc with minimal time off work - 15 mins late occasionally (pre arranged). School holidays are working quite well as GP's are happy to help out as they don't have the children for more than a few hours. I do feel very lucky.

I play with glitter for a living. That is I'm a nail artist with a bit of glitter tattoo'ing on the side. I found self employment the way to go, find a skill, master it, sell it. Plus sides are great pay, flexible hours, I'm my own boss, downsides are the thousands I've invested into making it a viable business, account keeping, having people steal your images and ideas and never having any free time ever. Worth it though.

I'm a instrumental music teacher. I travel between schools teaching. I choose my own timetable and I can fit in 5 hours of teaching per day and still do both school runs. I get just under £30 per hour. Works well for me but not the career I had hoped for after starting out as an orchestral musician and training at the Royal Academy.

I work mornings in public sector senior management. The only reason I wangled the hours was because I'd worked there so long and they didn't want to lose me. I'm pretty sure I wouldn't get such a senior job with those hours any other way.

Possibly going to take on more hours now DCs are in school, as I do a lot of extra hours at home unpaid. Only downside is that job is quite high stress, lots of responsibility which is hard to fit into 20hrs a week.

Pendeen I work both in other peoples offices and at home but mainly the latter. My main problem is I'm still very actively involved with my local RIBA and CE boards which take up quite a bit of organisational time.

I work in the public sector term time only. I also work flexible hours so that I can do some of the pick ups and drop offs. I still have to use breakfast and after school clubs several times a week though too.

I have been VERY lucky in that I've had a lovely understanding boss who has worked around this.

I did survey works for marketing research firms. A bit tough at the begging, but getting some income now.

I hired a cleaner when I had my first baby. She turned out to be my age, with school age kids and extremely glamorous!

She used to to be a pa for a big company, didnt want the travel or hours, and she charged 10-15 an hour to come and clean. She said it suited her, and she liked doing one off cleans best- but she had a car already so no set up costs.

I have a recruitment company I used to do from home. I don't at the minute and its dormant as too much going on privately.

Op, you could contact your local business link and women in business group and network/ offer services to do a talk etc just to see what the response would be.

You could join linked in and Maven, which is online consulting.