Requesting to move down the pay scale

[Juniper40004]

Strange request, I know.

I'm on M6 at the moment and have been for a few years. I have two young children so I don't want to go through threshold yet.

I was looking at working tax credits and the criteria are that you make less than £16,600 per annum but work more than 16 hours a week. From my calculations, I could do this on M2 but not on M6.

I'm not in work at the moment (extended maternity leave) but if I were to apply for a job and say I wanted to move down the payscale, would that be accepted or seen as too weird?

I can't afford the childcare fees if I don't get working tax credits so I'd be better off not working. Which is ridiculous, but there you go.

Thanks.

Tax credits are being replaced by universal credit over the next couple of years so do your calculations carefully based on both systems.

Under tax credits gross pension contributions are deducted off your income for calculation purposes so rather than dropping salary you could take out a personal pension and contribute into that and it would have the same affect except you'd have a nice little pension boost down the line (and more control to adjust your contributions vs income). Under universal credit I think its only 50% of gross thats deducted off your income for calculation purposes though.

DH changed from being a head of sixth form to straight teacher due to us having three DC, eldest is Autistic and youngest going through diagnosis. He was commuting nearly three hours a day, it was costing a fortune. Now he works locally, is home more, my sanity is returning. Sometimes its hard to equate things just to purely monetary costs.

Pay portability was scrapped a few years back so there's be no guarantee you'd be paid on m6 again.

Many schools are in dire straits financially now so I would imagine there are heads who will jump at the chance to pay you less.

Have you taken into account childcare vouchers?