Childminder - would this be a positive career change?

[Careerchangeee]

I have a career working for a bank.

Money is okay, not what it used to be. It's a high stress job and you never really get a chance to relax. My phone goes off in my non working hours constantly.

I'm currently on maternity leave with 5MO and absolutely adore being with children. It's a breath of fresh air. I have been thinking of changing career for a while.

We own our home with plenty of room and a garden. We have family land nearby with endless ways for children to have fun. We're not far from London but also very close to the seaside.

Childcare is very limited in my area and I feel I could help out with that.

Is childminding a good career change? Does anyone have any advice/information for me to think about?

I have a call scheduled tomorrow with 'tiney' to see how it works using them for support.

Are you ready and prepared to accept the reduction in pay? And becoming self employed?

Yes, I think so.

I can imagine it's hard work getting used too. I've never been self employed before 😬

I wouldn't register with an agency though, ho direct with Ofsted and save yourself the high fees they charge.

I used to be a childminder and overall it was a very positive experience for me. Here are my pros and cons

Pros:
Loved being my own boss -structuring my own day and setting my terms
Loved being out and about in the fresh air and not stuck in an office
Loved being able to be home with my own kids
Saving money on childcare - yes you don't earn loads as a childminder but do factor that in
So rewarding watching the children grow and flourish under your care and building lovely relationships with them

Cons
Long hours - they need to be in order to wrap around a working day
Being self employed made it hard for me to take holidays or switch off
The paperwork and inspections
Having to open your home up to so many people and to potential damage from kids and scrutiny from potential costumers and inspectors

I ultimately stopped as my kids got to secondary school and teenage age - they'd had enough of their home being overrun by toddlers.

Thankyou for the replies!

Extremely helpful - I have cancelled the call with the agency and will look into starting it on my own 😄