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Original poster

Any fellow teachers got some advice on pros/cons of dropping some hours?

39 replies

Astronaut79 · 23/02/2012 15:16

I've always worked full time and did so when I went back after ds. I got pregnant again (on purpose), so it was hard, but manageable.

However, I'm now 4 months into mat leave with dd and am enjoying the fact that I get to do stuff on the weekends with the kids. All last year I had to give up at least part of the weekend and get work done - not easy when you work in the kitchen.

I never, ever saw myself as a part-timer, but seeing how quickly dd is growing has reminded me that they're not little forever and, if I'm honest, I'm probably going to regret not spending time with the kids when they're little.

I'm 32 and have an awfully long time ahead of me, but I don't think I want to be a hod - at least, not in the foreseeable. The workload is unreal and I reckon that dropping to .9/.85 might give me some breathing space - and hopefully allow me weekends off.

I'm sure some of you must have done this, how do you find it? Do you wish you'd stayed full time? Do you feel like people don't take you seriously?

OP posts:

leenapeena · 29/02/2012 22:53

Hope you get your part time hours! I can't imagine ever working full time again :)

Original poster

Astronaut79 · 01/03/2012 16:15

Breatheslowly - my HR friends reckons 2 weeks is reasonable, but he's just told someone else in the dept (male, wants pt time for different reasons) that he'll let him know by Easter too, so perhaps I was being paranoid.

I'd better get them - in the week since I made my mind up (and helped, fairly considerably by the answers here!), I've already decided what I'm doing with my free time - and it sure as hell won't be housework!

OP posts:

Astr0naut · 29/03/2012 17:49

So, just had a meeting with the head and asked for 0.8. It looks like I'm going to get it, although as there'll be 5 of us in the same dept on 0.8, I may not get any blocks of time off.

But at least I should get my weekends back!

Letchladeee · 29/03/2012 18:03

PLeased that it looks like you're getting 0.8

I work 0.75 and I have to say it's ideal for me. I have school aged children, so I'm able to work 9-2 most days, so I'm there to pick them up from school each day. Only one day where I finish later, and then my parents pick them up and take them to their hobby and I meet them there.

I couldn't go back full time now. I find only working until 2 means that I get some serious quality time with the children every day after school (well, I do with my youngest - the eldest is always at her hobbies, I barely see her ) and I get to take my DC to their extra curricular stuff every day. I then find, having had a 5 hour break from work, when the children go to bed at 8pm, I'm ready to settle down to a couple of hours of marking before bed. I don't start my weekend work until after the children have gone to bed on a Sunday night.

As far as my children are concerned, they would barely know I've got a job because I always work when they're at school / in bed (when I'm busy though, I do take them to soft play so I can get on with my marking!). I find it quite tiring at times, but I do believe that its the best for them.

teddymummy · 29/03/2012 18:09

I am in primary and have 0.92 so I have 2 afternoons off a week. I work really hard both afternoons to do all my prep by 3.30 to collect my 3DC from their primary school. I have a bit to do at weekends but not the really heavy stuff. It works very well for me. i am still on the SMT and pretty much considered full time by colleagues. So as little as 0.8 or 0.9 can make a difference imo.

partystress · 29/03/2012 18:22

Teddymummy, I am intrigued.... How do you get two afternoons off on a 0.92 contract? is one of those PPA? In theory I am 0.98 to leave an hour before end of school one day a week, but this term getting cover sorted has been such a PITA I have only managed it 3 times though I do scoot out the door on the dot of 3.30 on my PPA afternoon.

teddymummy · 29/03/2012 20:32

Yes it is my PPA. We all get one half day per week. although everyone takes it as one whole day off per fortnight. We are not expected to be in school during our PPA time. Often I do work in school on my two afternoons off though- as resources close to hand.

MNHubbie · 31/03/2012 13:54

In terms of the original question you are still a teacher and it shouldn't prevent you being taken seriously.

I went part time for a little while a few years back and the first half a year it was pretty crap because of the odd hours that weren't blocked on. I made it work and I got to take the kids to school, get a lie in and leave early (not actually straight after the lesson I'd taught but before the end of the school day as I was able to put in my extra hours that I would have after school during the school day and then leave before the bell and pick up the kids on some days).

The following year when it was blocked up with me getting Fridays off and Monday mornings it was fantastic.

If I could afford it I would go part time again and recommend it to everyone. I do not regret it at all as it allowed me to get back on track healthwise (mild ME that threatened to get worse) and allowed me to spend extra time with my kids when it counted the most.

It didn't set my career back at all. I might have made Assistant Faculty Head sooner if I'd been actively looking and if a post had been available in house. I'm now looking at Assistant Head/Head of Faculty/AST posts with the full support of my Head and line manager and went through threshold to UPS without concerns.

I miss part time, it was positive and it did not hold me back.

Good luck and I hope it all works out well for you.

Oh and the other bonus...

... I went from part time to full time with a promotion... that first pay packet was incredible!

...and now thanks to inflation, austerity and Gove's hatred of teachers the same pay packet with UPS on top doesn't go as far as the part time wage used to...

cansu · 06/04/2012 08:52

How will you be able to spend more time at home if the time off isn't blocked? I work 4 days over 5 days so have two afternoons off. This works for me as I live very close to school. If you are just having more frees but will still be at work I don't think you are getting a very good deal. Can you not at least block off a morning and an afternoon?

MNHubbie · 06/04/2012 10:10

I think the OP meant not all blocked together. I would suspect a late start/early finish would still be possible. A lesson off in the middle of the day isn't really proper time off but it should be possible to swap such a lesson with an existing free to get a morning/afternoon off.

I suppose it depends upon the number of lessons that they have. A 4 lesson school would be less hassle than a 6 lesson one.

If it is all lessons in the middle of the day off it isn't worth it.

doubletrouble9 · 06/04/2012 15:51

your all lucky - my pt request has been refused twice!!!
im off with stress now !

BackforGood · 06/04/2012 16:44

cansu The OP was talking about spending weekends with her dcs. By having more 'frees' in the day, and fewer classes to teach (so therefore less preparation and marking, data filling in, and report writing, etc) she will be able to get a much higher % of her work done during school hours, and therefore have - say - SUndays free to spend with her family.
{I presume, I don't know OP }

cansu · 06/04/2012 20:11

This is worth a try. I have struggled with this tbh. I do enjoy having a bit of flexibility in my time so I use my afternoons off for catching up on housework, appointments for dc who have SN and picking up from school for my dc. However I have also toyed with staying at work on those two afternoons and seeing if that means I can avoid working at weekends. The problem to consider is that I can't plan / mark when I want as it needs to fit around the children I teach. So homework handed in on Friday will need marking before I next have time off! I think having a bit of slack in the week is a good thing for my sanity / stress levels but hasn't massively affected my workload. This could of course be very different if you went to 0.6 or below. It is obviously worth trying OP and I wish you well with it, but i would be wary of accepting any arrangement your head offers as a way of getting your 0.8. If you are to benefit from it i think you do need a decent run of time or a block of time to get any significant work done.

BackforGood · 07/04/2012 00:14

I'm not sure how it would translate into secondary timetabling, but, IMe in Primary, there's not a lot of point in doing anymore than a 0.6. If you do 4 days a week, then it is still seen as 'your class' and you still get all the additional crap workload that you would get if it's a FT position. Plus you tend to plan all the things such as literacy and Numeracy as they are going across the whole week. People who work 1 day a week aren't generally expected to manage a subject area or prepare the class assembly, or run an afterschool club, etc., etc.,etc.. You end up doing almost FT work for less pay. However, if you go to 0.6, then it's much more of a jobshare and the other half can more reasonably be expected to take up their part of the load.
I realise it's a slightly different scenario in secondary.

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