AIBU to ask any current childcare professionals the best and worst pays about their job please? DD 16 wants to start an apprenticeship with a local nursery so any real-life experiences appreciated!

[HotLatteontherunplease]

So DD 16 started a course in September (health and social care at the local tech) hated it and left. College doesn't suit everyone. Neither does health and social care. Fair enough.

Now she wants to start an apprenticeship at one of local nursery firms which has around ten nurseries situated locally.

AIBU to ask any current professionals in childcare their opinion on their job please?
Likes /dislikes, best and worst bits, things she should look out for, what would make her apprenticeship easier? As a mum how can I make it easier for her at home? I don't know anything about nurseries as my mother looked after all three when I worked so I've never even stepped foot in one. My background is in IT and I have no clue but I should imagine working in a nursery is exhausting and bloody hard work. So, what's it really like? Also I'm guessing the pay is terrible just like nurses, social workers, teachers... Please tell me I'm wrong?

I run a recruitment agency for childcare professionals and before that I worked as a Nanny for 10 years.
Happy to have a chat via PM if you wish.

I will say that if she stays in the UK - the pay is likely to be very low at a Nursery (which can work so long as she loves her job and is happy with the salary). Max £290 take home per week and there's little progression.

She could become a Nanny which is challenging to get into but the pay is much higher - starts at £400 take home per week and includes accommodation. But the hours are much longer. Progression would be via moving jobs and takes experience, but pay can go up to £800 take home per week in the UK, and as high as £1500 take home per week abroad. (all expenses covered).

She could go and work in a Nursery abroad where she'd be looking at a minimum of £600 take home per week inc. accommodation - advantages of lower hours than a Nanny and more structure.

There's lots of pros and cons to it and really it boils down to what she wants from her career.

Like I say, feel free to PM me :)

Thanks so much for your reply LigPatin
I can't see her moving abroad any time soon she's a real home body but who knows.

Are there any careers which are better paid that childcare could be a stepping stone for her to do? If the real money is in working abroad I don't think she will like that. It's not all about the money, though, is it?!

Thanks for your reply.

It's definitely not all about money at all - but Nursery work will restrict her to barely over minimum wage and that's a very difficult path to choose; she'd have to live for her job.

Childminding can be slightly more lucrative and gives her a bit more freedom, so thats an option - but she'd need her own home to do it.

In terms of childcare being a stepping stone to a different career - no more than any other qualification really. She could do a degree in Child Psychology and move into the Psychology route. She could look into teaching, but she'd need QTS to get that and therefore a degree - which again the prerequisites would be the same as if she had standard qualifications.

The benefits of her doing an apprenticeship are that she gets to experience the workplace - good for her and good for her CV. She'll come out with a Level 3 diploma which has the same advantages as (generic, non specific) A Levels - ie. would grant her access to a wide range of universities if she chose that or act as entry into office type roles that didn't require a specialism.

If she wants to work with children - do the apprenticeship.
She has to LOVE kids though, and have a lot of patience for the parents (you've seen plenty of PFB threads on here surely), and be prepared for low pay.

If she's just hopping and has no strong desire for a childcare career - she'd be better taking something a bit more generic or explore other apprenticeship options that lead to a career with more growth.

Just off the top of my head here's a quick pros and cons list for working in childcare, specifically working in a Nursery

PROS

• Structured environment
• Mildly creative role
• Pretty social as involves childcare teams
• Varied if you get to move between rooms
• Rewarding to see the children develop

CONS

• Low pay
• Without sounding too awful, it can have a "playground mindset" amongst the staff as most of them went straight from school to the Nursery - I've had staff really struggle with cliques
• Hard, physical labour
• Can be loud, stressful and demotivating

DD1 started a nursery apprenticeship after college, so she was just 18 when she started.

She loved working with children.
She found it difficult to get on with the other staff (all youngish females, she has always had trouble with 'peer group').
The level of responsibility compared with the rate of pay is ridiculous.

She injured her back at work. She was made to feel guilty/awkward about needing physio/doctors appointments. The job is very inflexible due to 'numbers'. (Eventually went off sick, took 7 months to recover, no way she can do that work again. Is now working part time in a customer service position, can't yet do full time as back still an issue. Misses the children but enjoying new job for now.)

Don't do it unless she loves children.

The job is very inflexible due to 'numbers'.

I would also urge her to consider this point. If it's a chain nursery with 10 others, she may find herself being moved around the nurseries to cover for staff absence. She may also experience regularly staying past her finishing time unpaid because of the ratios.

She's very young. If she does the apprenticeship it's a reliable job for the meantime. In future she might prefer to retrain as a nanny, or work abroad, or do something entirely different.

If she's happy to always earn about 18,000 a year for long days and constant colds, then yes, encourage away. If she's bright, get her to go to uni to study Early Childhood Studies and then she can choose to either work in a nursery at a higher pay as she will have a degree/level 6 or she can do a PGCE to become a teacher.

I think the EYE is quite a good qualification to get though as it is a 'required' professional qualification. Nurseries / childminders will always be needed so she should always be able to find work.

It wouldn't be a bad stepping stone to other things like a family support worker (ie a bit like a social worker but lower level).

The problem is though that if she doesn't love children she won't stick out the 18 months to do the apprenticeship.

If you give us some idea of her academics and interests/skills we might be able to suggest other things?

What about Peadiatric nursing? Or working as a healthcare assistant on a children's ward? Probably better paid.

@Toddlerteaplease paediatric nursing would require a degree, and places on the courses are hugely oversubscribed. They tend to get a lot of would-be nursers who love children, but haven't considered the nursing side of the job e.g. fancy doing a lumbar puncture on one of them?

@KeepThosePlatesSpinning I know, I'm a peadiatric nurse. But she could get a job as a HCA, although she'd need to be 18 and go from there.

Pay much, much worse than other occupations you mention.

These are all really great points, thanks everyone. I had no insight into the notion that she may be required to work at different sites! She has no transport so that's not very do-able! I'll speak to her when I'm home about paediatric nursing - that might be a better alternative. I'm not entirely 100% on her reasons for choosing a nursery in the first place other than I know that babies and children make her smile.

She originally wanted to be a child protection social worker but got put off by lots of horror stories and didn't enjoy full time college studying health and social care at all.

She wanted to be more hands on but didn't want to work with older people so adult social care was a big no. Babies and children have always made her smile and she's been interested in programmes about child development on TV 'child of our time' etc that sort of thing.

Careers advisor encouraged her to look into a childcare apprenticeship as it seemed to marry up her preference for practical work with her interest in babies and child development. The idea I'm guessing came from her rather than DD. She is squeamish with blood (so not sure about HCA role) but can change a nappy no problem, apparently.

I sound overly invested and maybe I am but I don't want her to embark on an apprenticeship, hate it and leave.

What are her qualifications at GCSE and capacity for further/higher ed like? That will affect her options.

IT would be far better earning potential and employment conditions, for example, if she had aptitude!

I think you’re right to be worried - she’s on a path to low pay and bad conditions!

Based on your further info it looks like it might work.
If she does the apprenticeship and sticks with it then:

• she will have a level 3 qualification
• she can use it as a stepping stone to something else
• she can go and do something completely different after qualifying, just as many college leavers do
• she can pick up babysitting as a side earner more easily as she has qualifications
• it will help her as and when she starts her own family

She doesn't need to think of it as a career for life, just something to stick at for 18 months-2 years. The low pay won't matter to start with as she isn't used to loads of money. it gives her a couple of years to mature and think about what she wants.

re Travelling to other sites. DD had to do this a bit but she had a car. She got to go because she was mobile and other workers weren't.