To think I cannot keep this up and ask for your best ideas

[Enoughisenoughhhhh]

I've name changed as this is all very outing. I apologise that it's long.

I am 35, 2 DC age 1 and 2. I have 10 years experience in my job - I am an English language tutor at a university pathway college. Formerly at a local FE college, previously at various private language schools including working abroad at a few different points. I have a masters from a respected university (achieved a distinction) in english language teaching. I additionally have a post graduate certificate in using ICT in language teaching. There are not really any further qualifications for me to gain within this profession, if you can even call it that. My current and previous line managers are full of praise for my classroom practice. I genuinely care about my students and enjoy my work.

I have never had a permanent or even fixed term contract, which is sadly very normal for the industry. I spent 4 years at the FE college on a sessional contract but our whole department was recently made redundant. Over summer, I applied for two jobs and received two offers and started at one in september. It has come to light today that due to changes in the wider university that were unforeseen, there will likely be no work for me in the new year. It is unlucky that this has happened so soon after me starting in a new place but the fact is it could be any month, after any amount of time working on a sessional contract. I cannot live with the instability. It is beyond stressful trying to sort out the childcare when I dont know when I'm working from one month to the next apart from anything else.

My problem is I am at a loss for what else to do. I have spent 10 years getting good at this job and achieving qualifications to show it. I had hoped that with masters level qualifications under my belt and a solid bank of experience I would be in a better position but I'm not and it's starting to feel like I never will be. Does anyone have any bright ideas? I am open to any and all suggestions.

Oh look www.cambridgeinternational.org/about-us/examiners/.

I'm sure it's a bit piecemeal though.

@Enoughisenoughhhhh

I went into prison Ed from doing my (fe) teaching practice there. Usually if you look through teaching agencies the ads will say offender learning or prison Ed, or search through Milton Keynes college (main provider) vacancies. I did it for 6 years. It's tough, but it's never boring. The teaching is challenging but it's far more about teaching that it is about admin. No extra curricular anything- no open days or parents evening or reports. No marking home (because you can't take anything out)

I found it fascinating, I found the learners really interesting. I miss it (now teaching in mainstream fe)

Everything has its plusses and minuses of course. Most teachers I knew there were either 'been there as long as the hills' kind of teachers, or ended up there through teaching practice/new qualified. Some come there from employment (eg trades) and do a diploma to teach alongside work and qualify that way.

They would literally snap your hand off if you turn up there with experience like yours.

@thenewaveragebear1983 that sounds absolutely fascinating. I've had a look at the Milton Keynes college website. The fly in the ointment is I am nowhere local to MK, or indeed any of the prisons they supply staff into. TBF I am not local to any prisons at all that I know of, and I am tied to public transport for getting to work but it's certainly something I'm going to look into further. I assume all prisons will offer some kind of provision? Perhaps it will spur me on to get on with (long overdue) driving lessons too. Thanks so much for your advice.

@simpkin there is some money around for ESOL (migrants wanting to integrate) these days. My former employer FE college has a department that does this where I have some connections. The department I worked in was a separate one, for international students, and most / many of my colleagues have taken sideways steps into ESOL work so it's rather crowded in there these days. I'll certainly be reaching out to see if anything has changed though. Maybe there are other places that do this kind of thing that I could investigate too.

As for being a DOS, that's a no from me. It's not my skill set or area of interest, being essentially more admin than teaching.

Thank you for your advice!

There is some money around for ESOL because I now work in a college offering esol and around 40+ students are getting esol courses funded.

@Enoughisenoughhhhh Milton Keynes franchise out the education provision so you never need to be near MK. The prisons all offer education, but yes, being near to one does help! I never knew they did lessons in prison until I was doing a basic access course and someone there had learned to read in prison- it was a lightbulb moment for me, and I ended up going through uni and post grad purely to work inside. I really loved it.

@thenewaveragebear1983 I have found the provider who works in my most local prison. They're not advertising any roles but I've got nothing to lose, so I'll try to get in touch. Thanks for this stroke of inspiration.

Thanks to everyone else for the advice. Some good food for thought.

I taught English as a foreign language for donkeys years and have taken an interesting sideways step so I’ve sent you a pm