Hi OP,
My partner trained as a teacher while I was pregnant and then of course we had a small child in his early years of teaching.
It was a horrible time and I saw so little of him that we gave up our rented accommodation and lived between our parents houses (in different areas of the country) because I saw so little of him I was always alone with our baby.
He left the house by 7:30 in the morning, got back about 7/7:30pm, had tea and then worked again until late. He would also work at least one day of the weekend sometimes both. It was miserable.
Re a previous poster saying don't move year groups my partner always thought/said "it will be better next year I will have more experience/have my planning to reuse etc). It never got better he was always either juggled into a different year group (flexibility/professional development apparently) or the national curriculum expectations had changed.
After 3 years or so he was ill with stress/exhaustion and signed off work. He was off for a month or two and then shaky for a few more weeks to limp through to the summer holidays.
Following being off sick he went back part time (3 days) and we have never looked back. Now a further 6 years have passed and still part time and it is lovely. (I also work now but didn't then with a young child. My (now) husband is able to do ordinary things now that he is part time like help look after the kids, use the gym, go on a bike ride. He played football on a work day evening yesterday so was marking until 1am.
Anyways sorry for my life story but my point is actually if you are able to consider looking for a part time post when you are qualified. All the good parts of teaching without the relentless workload. I think job shares should be the future of teaching as it is almost impossible for expectations and standards to be reduced (stats and league tables are not going away) and two people can meet them without a problem where for one it is awful.
Re the pay I think it's great (sorry teachers). It's the hours that are awful so the hourly rate doesn't end up so great. Whether people think the pay is good or poor depends if you are comparing the job to people earning 60/80k in different professions etc or to retail/care. (I work in care).
My husband (now top of general teacher scale) earns 20k in his 3 days teaching. He still sometimes says he can't see himself teaching forever etc but I remind him he would probably have to work 5 days to earn what he does in general retail and to give up his holidays which are a god send (having children of our own who need school holiday care). I'm a carer and to match his salary would need to be full time/not term time only. If he left teaching I don't think he would find anything else on about 36k full time equivalent.
Of course people do hold down full time teaching jobs and manage their families - even lone parents. They are amazing! Many don't and leave the profession (or don't even start) through choice or get sick and don't go back.