From teacher to childminder - work-life balance question

[Coconutfeet]

I'm currently a primary school teacher. I've got one dc and expecting another in a few weeks. I'm considering not returning to my job after mat leave as the thought of paying for 2 dcs in childcare, which will practically wipe out my salary, makes me wonder whether it's worth all the pressure and weekends spent planning, marking etc.

I'm considering ways in which I can improve my work-life balance and spend more time with my own dcs and, as I really enjoy working with children generally, I've been thinking about training as a childminder. I know it's hard work and there's a lot of associated paperwork which is really time-consuming so I'd be interested to hear from anyone who's made a similar move. How does it compare with teaching? Has it worked out the way you'd hoped and what have been the advantages/drawbacks?

Hi,
I'm in the process of registering as a childminder now my youngest has started reception. I would say the biggest drawback for you in the short-medium term would be that your own children will count in the number you are allowed to care for. I think that generally childminders are registered for a maximum of 6 of which up to 3 can be under 5 and of those only 1 under 1. Assuming your eldest is not at school yet, this would only allow you to look after one extra pre-school aged child which will not earn you very much money....
You could fill up with after-school children (x3) or over 8's (as many as you are insured for) but this is generally for shorter hours.
Can't answer your other questions, sorry, but this was what struck me from your initial post.

yes, what runout said

the Big Money is in the tinies, and you will only be able to care for one under 5 as long as yours are under 5

It truly is the BEST job I have ever had, I ADORE it; you are right that the paperwork can be onerous, partic at start up but it kind of ticks over by itself with a bit of care and attention

So (ramble ramble) do the maths, and see if your family can absorb a drop in income til your own children go to school

Thanks for the replies. My ds will be starting school in Sept 2013, which is probably around the time I'd be thinking of starting if I did go ahead. Once he's at school presumably I could have 2 tinies plus my own. Then I could have ds as an after schooler. Then could I have two more after schoolers as well?

I need to work out whether it's worth it financially. But to be honest I wouldn't mind a slight drop in income if there was an improvement in our quality of life as a family.

I am not a CM but have one and know a couple more. Tbh it's not a job I'd regard as ideal for work /life balance, it can be long hours and not many holidays (mine has 4 weeks unpaid, plus fewer mindees any time her families take), at least teaching you'd get the holidays just with your DC. CMs work at home, house/kitchen gets in a mess etc. DC may find it hard to have you share your attention (IMO my CM's dc seem to, understandably).

The "my pay only just covers childcare" argument is a red herring, since financially, need to look at longer term and household earnings / potential, not just a few years. Teaching would be much better pay (incl pension, leave etc) in medium and long term, and would prob be hard to get back into after a break, depending on your stage / subject ( saw a thread on here somewhere about this with lots of comments from teachers).

I gave up good career 5 years ago to be at home with my then 3 yo ds and since we planned on having another 1 or 2 children ourselves thought it would be ideal if I gave up work and retrained as a CM.

In reality it was probably the worst thing I could have done as we suffered unexplained sub-fertility and couldn't have any more dc, my ds hated the attention the other little ones demanded of his mummy and now he is in p4 he wants to bring friends over for tea, go to clubs after school and sometimes I cant manage it as I am working til 6pm, waiting on parents, dropping kids off etc.

For the last 18 months I have been trying to return to work with no success. The job I had before was a job for life, a career. I wish I had taken a career break instead and had options to return. It is very difficult to get back into the working world after being out for a while, although i am unfamiliar with how teaching works.

Also, I struggle with the pettiness and sniping amongst childminders in the area where I operate. There is a lot of that to deal with on top of the repetitive daily routine and the isolation can get to you.

Some people are cut out for Childminding and it can be very rewarding but for me it was a relatively short solution to a temporary situation of my child being young. I hope this makes sense :)

If your dc is at school in sept then it would be just paying for baby cc and before and after school, its a killer at first but will be worth it when baby is at school, could your school offer you a job share?

Cm is the best job but its not secure, paperwork is alot, and your dc sometimes dont like it

Please think about long term

Do you need the income? Silly question perhaps but you are asking about becoming a childminder, not opening a shop. Yet the risks are similar in my view... you are starting your own business, you may need to make some investment in that business, you open your doors and you hope people will walk through them.

Just because you become a childminder, does not mean you will have children to care for... there are many childminders out there struggling to find children to mind.

Thanks for all the the replies. Nannynick, I do need an an income. Decent childminders are very hard to find in my area so I don't think getting the mindees would be an issue. (In fact my old CM who was wonderful but has now moved away only worked pt, term time only and still had a queue of people wanting their children to go there. I was considering doing similar.)

Mopbucket - You're right - thinking long term is really important. I already do a job share but still end up working many evenings and much of the weekend, which is even more frustrating, as I only take a pt wage. Would the CM paperwork be more onerous than this, do you think? I came to teaching late, so will not have the advantages of a full teaching pension when the time comes anyway and have had to take out a private pension as well. I agree though, I definitely need to look carefully at the pension implications.

I'm interested about whether it's a good thing for your own dcs, as I've heard some mixed opinions on this. Some people seem to think that it's really good, as you're doing a range of different activities and they're learning to mix with other children. Others say their children find it really hard. Am interested in different perspectives on this.

Lucielucie - Getting back into the world of work is a tricky one isn't it. Sorry you've had such a difficult time. I definitely need to think about how hard it might be.

my DC were um um I think 5 and 3 when I started (now in secondary/coming to end of primary) and sometimes found it hard, but once I had explained that it was my JOB (don't know how they didn't know that I got paid, I guess it just wasn't made explicit) they were fine.

My DCs have benefited enormously, not just from having a parent on tap*, but my studies, training and continuous development have informed and improved my parenting as well as the care I give to the children who I care for.

*My DC come second when the minded children are here, IYSWIM, this can be tricky but one muddles through

Another thought - I worked five days a week in the beginning, 8 am to 6 pm, it nearly killed me. (now I work Mon- Thurs, 8 -5.30, with lots of ad hoc early finishes) Try to work part time, or not hugely long hours. That's my Top Tip.

Just in response to something you asked a bit further down, yes, once your son is at school he is classed as over 5 for numbers even if he is still at school.

I have soon to be leaving my career to join childminding- partly because the stress of my job is getting me down but mostly for work/life balance as I will be able to spend more ime with my DD.

Time will tell if it's the right thing to do but you have to try these things to know..

Thanks Deepthought and Mrsroundbottom.

It's nice to hear how beneficial it's been for your children Deepthought. I'm imagining too that you do lots of activities together which you may not do as often with just your own dcs. I think the p/t idea is a good one, especially at the beginning as I guess it's a pretty full on job which will take some getting used to.

Good luck with the transition mrsroundbottom. I really hope this turns out to be the change you need.

Eeeek so do I

Good luck with everything x