Renting a room with a TA salary.

[MissBlacksheep]

I am planning to get a full-time teaching assistant job most probably in primary this September. I am currently staying with parents and don't have to worry about bills. Although once I get a full-time job, I am planning to pay them some rent.
I have a plan to move out in the next 2 years. Has anyone rented a room with a TA salary? Is it doable to live with a flatmate with a TA salary? Some schools pay less than 17,000 pounds, that too before tax. I don't know if that's enough to live on with no husband/partner.

I think you will struggle...there's no such thing as a full time TA as you get all the holidays ...maybe with a bit of experience you can go from TA to HLTA and earn a bit more

Consider what else you could do to earn, bearing in mind that your day is relatively short and you have the school holidays.
If you could get a job with the after-school club as well, that would be a boost, especially if they run any holiday childcare. Other holiday childcare providers might be worth a try. Or do something different in the evenings, such as bar work.

What's your longer term career plan?

It depends very much where you live- there are parts of the country where it would be affordable, and parts where it very much wouldn't be.

By far your biggest outgoing will be your rent, so I would suggest a look on right move to see what rooms in shared houses are going for in your area!

I agree that you may want to look at work like holiday clubs and after/before school clubs to up your income!

It is criminal how poor the pay for TAs is, though.

You’re going to find it very difficult if not impossible to be able to live on your own on that salary.
17000 after tax, you’re talking about taking home £1.3k after tax. Rent would be circa £400-£600 a month. You would have bills to pay plus all other living costs and if you drive even more expense. You would have to get a second job to top up your income.
Why don’t you just stay at home for a couple of years and build up your pot and then look at other options after that.

Don't forget a TA salary is pro-rata for term time only, (so if it's advertised as 17k full time but you'll only be working term time not full time, salary will actually be less, probably around 12k/13k per year before any deductions like tax or NI).

It will be incredibly tough to do!

Lots of TAs supplement their income with Breakfast Club/After School Club/Holiday Club jobs. It’s not a job you go into for the earnings potential.

If the job is advertised at £17,000 that will be for full time ie 52 weeks a year, usually 36hpw.

So you need to divide by 52 and x by 39 (school weeks are 38 or 39) so that's £12,750. Then divide by 36 (hours) and x by whatever hours you are contracted for. The salary will be paid over 12 months.

As a pp said, most TAs also do Breakfast and After School clubs and If there is one, Holiday Clubs 8n the summer.

It is horrendously underpaid and I don't now how anyone who doesn't have a partner also working, can live on it.

Double check the salary! That figure sounds very high - is it FTE (before being pro-rated)? I am top of my pay scale and take home about £1k per month after tax, pension, NI etc