60 this year. Frugal retirement or carry on?

[EmeraldJeanie]

I'm support staff at a school so not mega bucks! I have a small pension and lump sum I can claim at 60 (started ball rolling on this). Had 8 years not working (regret financially) but have been working in this role for getting on 11 years.
Work is tough. I am touch wood fit but just feel jaded. A TA in her 60s retiring this year and I am tempted!
Back of the envelope calculations means could do it if frugal. State pension would help increase income at 67.
I would do pre 2008 pension plus 10 years early taking one, topped up over 7 years by lump sum.
My husband needs to be on board. He is 58 so I want him to do back of envelope calculations as well for 60. He is much less impulsive than me!
We have paid off our mortgage though house could do with TLC. Have enough savings for new boiler/ bathroom etc if need be. To be honest, bathroom could stay in 70s glory as far as I'm concerned!
I have elderly parents, an unwell best friend and life seems short. However...and this is the big one...I have a child at University and another in sixth form and there are accommodation costs etc.
If I continue working it will be til 62 max. I will look at my numbers again! Whatever we do and whenever, it will be a caravan holiday retirement not a cruise one!!

Unfortunetly, TA s are not in teacher pension scheme. OP , my position is not totally disimilar and having just turned 60 and working full time as year 6 teacher, I too am exhausted ! I have drawn up budget etc and sadly come to conclusion I simply need to go until 65. Unexpeded expenses crop up ALL the time, houses need maintaining- boiler goes, white goods pack up, roof and guttering need repairs etc. Being retired and sitting at home because you dont have money to meet up with friends/ family or put petrol in the car or buy family a gift from time to time would be miserable .Having a slightly bigger pension pot means you can sleep knowing that when the unexpected hits, you're ready. I would seriously think about doing a desk job in a school part- time or out of education all together, just for a couple of years. Teaching/ TA is unbelievably exhausting but other less physical roles might be an option.

I think you should look for another job for the last few years - you don’t need the school holidays off, your dc are out of that. Imagine you could take holidays anytime. I bet you there nights night shift in a supermarket or hospital would bring you the same money. I think you need a change of scene!

My fixed term contract is ending soon and I don't hold out too much hope of finding anything else suitable. I'm 58 and have an NHS pension I can access at 60 so trying to work out if I can cobble together two other very small pensions and a bit of savings to last two years. I have two kids still at Uni although one graduating this year and the other with one more year to go. DH still working for another two years. Mortgage paid off. I guess the thing that makes me think I should try to find something else and carry on is for the kids- helping them with house deposits, weddings etc when the time comes. I have four kids so expensive. If I can't find another job it's going to be a frugal early retirement ! I am so tired and ready to not work again. I've worked for 40 years in difficult jobs which have taken their toll physically and emotionally.

I sympathise @Pickledonion1999
As my 60s approach, I realise I have pottered along money wise not being very grown up or forward thinking to be honest. I am looking at all options now alongside dh. Better late than never I guess.
I only have 2 children. Eldest does have a holiday job on zero hours contract which does tend to give him hours each university break. The youngest knows we expect him to get a job (as his brother did) if he takes a gap year before university (which he is likely to go to).
The sensible thing seems to be to hold steady for the moment and see how the land lies at work for the coming year.
I wish you luck for bridging the gap to 60.

Do you have to wait until September to increase your pension contributions? That’s seven months away. The best time to start is now if you can.

I've got several well off friends who retired at 60 and are loving the freedom they have, waltzing round the world in lovely holidays etc.

The three friends I have who are not in that financial position and who retired at 60 all went back to work within 18 months. Partly for the money but also partly for the social side of it.

I'm 60 this year and am being made redundant but don't feel ready to give up work. DH and I went through the figures and my biggest concern was that, if he suddenly died, my work pension alone would not be sufficient for me to live on. We own our house outright so I could sell it and downsize, but wouldn't want to do that straight away during the grieving process.

Can you downsize your home?

She has a school age child and a child in university. I highly doubt it, especially if uni child has to move back in

I feel for you, it is tiring. I think as you have two lovelies in uni and sixth form I would gather myself to keep going for 3 years and then reassess. But I would try not to see it as limping along but a set period of time to really focus on your wellbeing, things you would love to do and getting house stuff done while you have salary coming in. Wishing you the best x

Have you looked at your NI contributions regarding state pension? I limped on for a couple of more years to ensure I was eligible for full pension (if I live that long!). I retired fro. NHS last year, husband retired with quite good occ pension and just got state pension so fine now. However if anything happened to him I couldn't afford to keep our house. Lots to think about but I know how exhausting it is.

I'm in a very similar situation

I feel for you going back tomorrow xx
If your school is, along with so very many others, looking at finances and the possibility of restructures, is there any possibility of voluntary redundancy? You could mention it to SBM or HoS or someone in confidence, as they might not have that in the mix of options going forward.
It'd make a good option for you, but because of the costs, they may not go for it.

Good luck

My mum and dad both retired early (divorced so their stories are separate) - my dad found mentally challenging - he’s got cash annd well off but so bored even now. Constantly doing up the house and moving house - his work was physically and mentally demanding too and it was a huge shock to the system. His wife still works is a main issue. Then there’s my mum who found rising costs took her frugal living into breadline. Hardly can afford to go out never mind holidaying etc and she’s even just made it to 67 with the state pension top up. She’s seriously considering an equity release so she can enjoy life a little!

I’m with you though - school is hard work! Im
40 and worry how I’ll see another 20 years never mind nearly 30!

Could you do a phased retirement? Go down to 4 days in September? 3 days in September 2027? And so forth? Or look into getting a small part time job to keep your finances and brain ticking over?

@chubbaa It is still something to consider, especially if the sixth form child is planning to go to uni also.

Im 60 and early last year I was thinking about retiring even though i wasnt ready (too many negative changes at work)
I have never financially supported my now adult kids and my house is paid off.

In the end I got a new job with a new employer and it has been life changing.

Maybe it's not retiring you need but a change of direction, job wise?

My line manager dropped dead recently at 54 years old. Another colleague, working part time while awaiting the retirement of his (much younger, this is relevant) wife, recently found himself diagnosed with widespread secondary cancer.

I’ll be 55 when my husband retires, at which point I’ll be doing the same despite having plenty of career left in me. We are incredibly fortunate that his careful financial planning and hard earned money will fund a comfortable retirement for us, but we’d make the same choice even if it was only just affordable. Life is short, and if you have the resources that make it manageable then enjoy those years to their fullest OP!

Life is not always short.

I get what you're saying about people you know dying young- we all know people like that.

But from a financial point f view, it's best to stick to the stats which is a life expectancy of around 80-85 and there is an increasing number of over-90s.

Some people enjoy not working, but to stop work with 30 years of life left (on average) is a very long time indeed. It's almost the same time as from graduating at 21 to retiring at 55.

There is also masses of medical evidence that working longer if in a job you enjoy is better for health.

Early retirment is not always the wonderful thing people think. It might be if you enjoy travel and pottering around every day but for some it can seem a meaningless and empty life.

My dad had to retire at 65 and hated that (it was the law back then.) He never adjusted to the next 30 years of life he had , and wished he could have carried on working, in spite of having plenty of hobbies.

Just putting the other side.

EmeraldJeanie · 21/02/2026 07:46
I retired early on a v v limited pension as I was burnt out from my profession.
I felt very liberated and i general enjoy a simple life . I cook from scratch daily and it keeps costs down.
However, over time I’ve noticed that quite lot of people I know retired early but have much much more income, so my lifestyle is rarer it seems.
The difficulty I have is that whilst they do pottery classes, yoga, retreats, meals out, lavish hols, I cant join in . … this leads to less invites as they know that I just dont have that income.
I dont know if that would be a factor for you - may not be an issue, but its something I didnt think of !

meant to add.
to supplement my income I do dog sits …. V poorly paid ( £40 a day) .. but it can add up and like the caring aspect. Also have a cleaning job - hate it as its weekly- feels tying. Much prefer the dog sits as I can pretend fully retired when walking a dog !

That was exactly why I retired at 60. I just couldn't do it any longer. No regrets.

I retired very early 10 years ago on a very limited personal pension . I live what most people would call a very frugal life. When I qualify for State Pension my income will double.

The freedom is intense. One reason I wanted to retire early was to work hard at self sufficiency which is going well and to have time for my hobbies and volunteering in the areas about which I'm passionate.

All my hobbies are cheap, but through choice not necessity. I swim in the sea, go camping, cycle, grow, cook....all stuff that costs very little.

I loved my career but can honestly say these have been the best years of my life. The freedom is intense. Every single morning I am glad of my choice.

Key things I would say are knowing you'll be happy living within your means and having enough things you're burning to do to keep you fit, active, engaged and stimulated.

ChurchTower
sounds fantastic.
Do you find that those things keep you busy?
I am asking because I like similar things , but when I headed to retire , I then started dog sitting as i was worried about money and unsure about the frugality long term.
I mean we dont have a great deal now, but we save and go abroad in our van once a year for a month ( v old van - hope she holds out! ) . We never eat out on holiday apart from breakfast some times as it is so cheap , as is wine!

ChurchTower
meant to say I like walking on the beach ( live walking distance) , country walks( ditto)
little villages. , but occasionally a city for contrast as my village is so small, planning trips, sitting in my garden, cooking, live music .
Travel x1 a year.
I struggle to motivate without structure , but yr lifestyle does sound amazing…..

Really interesting hearing different ways of frugal! Food for thought...
First day back at school after half term. Busy but doable day.
Will see how I go and how things pan out over term and with life in general.
I am planning and plotting various scenarios and escape routes with different timelines!

EmeraldJeanie
Do you have a passion or interest that could make you a bit of money? Like my dog sitting?

I like walking so dog walking not out of the question. Like cats too! However, I've not got passions as such apart from pottering about!
I would keep up a volunteer thing I do and possibly do more for it.
For the minute keeping eye on health of my Dad and seeing how long I can keep going at work.
The garden needs a lot of attention. House too. But would I do it?!
I would get an over 60 railcard as near a station and nice places nearby.
Also, reasonable bus routes. Not London so would pay fares til 67.