Fed up with being an LSA but don't want to return to teaching.

[malificent7]

Trained as an English Teacher but I find it far too stressful and have been bullied in most schools where I have worked. I am currently an LSA which I enjoy in many ways as less stress but the money is shite and there is little career progression. I am just about breaking even each month and cannot save or get a mortgage.
I am working in FE and I feel a bit wistful seeing all of these young people studying for interesting careers and I am in a job that doesn't really make the most of my talents. I am also only on supply as have found it very hard to get a permanent job as a TA (have been to several interviews etc.)

The main reason why I have stayed in education for so long is that I am scared of change. My teaching career didn't pan out and I am worried any more careers won't pan out too and cost more.

I guess teaching knocked my confidence and now I feel stuck but I don't want to be in education forever. Need a pep talk and /or ideas please! Anyone else in the same boat?

Primary?
Special needs?
Private tuition?
PGCE lecturer?

Or move to something else like publishing, personal assistant?

I'm a primary teacher back after three years out, and I'm loathing it. So sympathy here.

I feel your pain. I don't have answers sadly.

I'm involved in SEN being a TSA/TA. I guess it's the zero hour contract culture, the poor wage and lack of career progression that gets me. Shame really. I just feel like my enthusiasm for education has waned over the years.

The positives are the kids etc but the paper work is a joke, even in my role!

I did the HLTA thing and loved it, all the teaching without all the stress

But not sure if that is an option in FE

Could move to SE maybe and do it?

What about daily supply teaching? Much better pay and zero stress?

I don't think switching to be a Primary teacher would help in terms of stress levels.

What about TA in Special School then consider special needs teaching?

It sounds like you don't want to work in education at all, so the world's your oyster really! Unless you want to stay working with children - in which case you would have to resign yourself to low paid jobs.
If you don't know/don't care what you do, then sign up with a temping agency and take anything they offer, also go on a jobs website like total jobs (there's loads of others) etc and start searching for anything in your immediate area e.g.. 5 -10 mile radius - you'll be amazed at how many jobs will come up. Use this as a way of seeing what takes your fancy. It may be that you will have to retrain, depending on what is taking your fancy, or you may be able to just land a job based on skills gained in teaching (being organised/public speaking/excellent English skills/admin etc).

There's a million different types of jobs out there - transport jobs(driving, planners), computer-based jobs (programming etc.), finance (accountancy, working in a bank etc), university admin (sign up to their jobs alerts), medical/caring jobs (carer,nurse,doctor), legal (social work, probation, courts, law), charities (education officer, marketing, fundraising etc). Business (sales and marketing). There's tons of others. What takes your fancy?

One word of caution - it takes a lot of effort to get a non-teaching because you will be perceived as having no skills. You may not hear from most jobs you apply for, and you may have to just take whatever you can get, BUT this can then get you some non-educational experience and from there you can move sideways into something you might enjoy more.

Id like to do either horticulture perhaps garden design or working with SEN kids or radiography. I miss using my scientific brain and i think there is a big future in radiography technology

It sounds like something like this would suit you OP - Lufton College teaches horticulture amongst other subjects and uses equine therapy, for example.

A friend of mine used to live nearby and says it has a good reputation. Don't know of any other similar colleges throughout the country but it might be worth investigating.

Unless you are already doing something like that?

Sounds like you have some good ideas and know what you want to do already, which is a large part of the battle. You now just need to find a way of doing what you want - where there's a will there's a way and all that!