Returning to primary teaching UK - am I crazy?

[Grovescamp15]

Hi, I'm looking for some insight from existing Primary School teachers in the UK please.

I qualified as a Primary Teacher with QTS in 2014 and completed my NQT year in 2015. I worked in a lovely school for 3 years then moved for a progression opportunity (which turned out to be empty promises). After 3 years in this school I left teaching altogether as I experienced poor mental health after what I felt was targeted bullying from SLT towards me as well as a close family member falling extremely ill.

Since then, I have continued to work with children (more mentorship type roles) and I now work for my local council in the education department. I enjoy my job but I don't feel fulfilled as I did in the first few years of my teaching career before things turned sour.

I have been out of the classroom for 4.5 years and I am considering returning but I am extremely apprehensive as I feel very out of touch with how things have progressed in the world of teaching. I have teacher friends who I have asked but in large they all either love it or hate it and want to get out so it's difficult to get a balanced view.

Am I absolutely crazy to consider returning to the classroom? And, if I did, what are some things you think I should know about how teaching has evolved over the last 5 years? I'm also concerned about getting a job after a period of absence. Whilst I do feel I'm a much stronger person now, I am concerned my experience is outdated and my confidence in the classroom will be zero!

Thank you if you got to the end of this! Any advice much appreciated.

It is not something i would fo. I think the demands of teaching are worse now than ever before. I teach in secondary. If ur current job allows u to have a good work life balance I'd look for fulfillment elsewhere.

Would supply teaching for a bit be an option for you? It'll give you a chance to get recent classroom experience and to test the waters to see if something you wanted to return to longer term, without the pressure of data or the pastoral side of being a classroom teacher.

It might not be financially viable for everyone though!

@BCBird thanks for your reply. I do have a lot of flexibility in my job now which is a huge bonus, especially as I have a young child. My boss is great too which is always a plus! It is still a very fast paced roll though and I often wonder if it's worth £10k a year less than what I would be making teaching...not that it's all about money of course but it is a factor in my decision making. Do you mind sharing what aspects of the demands are worse than ever? Is it general workload or is there a specific strain in a particular area?

@JumpstartMondays we could possibly make supply work financially for a few months but it does fill me with fear to think of quitting my job to do supply and I don't have any time to take on additional supply unfortunately. It has definitely crossed my mind as an option though.

Education changes all the time. There’s been a significant level of change at all levels over the years.

Think back to why you left teaching in the first place, many leave and go back and realise instantly that they have made a mistake!

I think in your case, it’s all about researching the school - look at their OFSTED report if it is recent and their website… league tables etc to give you a perception of the school. Request a visit to see the school ‘in action’ so you can speak to the staff and get a feel.

I would say pupils are more needy and the amount of these is on the increase whilst provision is diminishing in my experience. A school' s ofsted report does not really give u a true idea of what it is like. I second what has been said about thinking about why u left teaching in the first place. Are those reasons dtill a factor? Good luck in whatever you decide. 10k might sound a lot. What will it equate to per month? Will u be in the next tax bracket? Will u need to outsource and pay for things you can do in your current job?

I had a career break and then went into Supply work. I thought it would lead into a permanent role.

If I went back in time I would probably still do Supply Teaching but concentrate on retraining for a new career.

Pay portability has gone so if you went for a permanent teaching role you would need to negotiate your salary at interview. You might find you are expected to take a pay cut.

If your current workplace is flexible you could maybe dip your toe in the water as part time supply. Or do some tutoring, perhaps? Or you could look at retraining options while continuing in your current role.

Supply teaching is very irregular and I usually do not earn as much as an ECT on M1 in a year. My husband earns a decent wage so we can manage. For some years the flexibility to be able to leave a role at short notice was very important to me. I very rarely used it but it was good to have. (It was the one advantage that carried me through). This is not so much the case now.

My agency was putting me forward for permanent jobs recently and reported that some schools were really put off by the dreaded words “supply teacher”. There is a lot of prejudice out there and there are people who can’t be bothered to hide it. (Can’t think why children in some schools disrespect supply teachers…)