I quit my childcare career and am struggling to find a new job

[Parla92]

I have over 11 years of work experience working in the childcare sector and have worked in various roles such as nursery assistant, nursery practitioner supply, early years practitioner, early years educator, room leader, and deputy.

After getting my Level 3 Early Years Educator qualification, I continued studying and achieved a Foundation degree in Children's and Young People's Services.

When I started this career, I was very excited about it however, my mind gradually started to change. Working long hours, covering sickness on your annual leave days, sudden changes to shifts, ungrateful and rude staff/parents, supervising unqualified agency staff who aren't allowed to do anything but sit and get more paid than you when you get the minimum hourly pay rate (which at the end made me go and work as an agency too), staying hungry for long hours and getting physically and mentally exhausted, drained and be expected to clean after you're literally beaten AND come back to work the next day at 7.15 or 7.30 and be expected to be all fresh, energetic, productive and patient. HOW?

I have never met anyone who loved doing this job. Don't get me wrong, those people including me, did love children. We loved caring for them and being a part of their learning and development. However, that is the smallest part of the job, as we are expected to show off to parents(customers)/OFSTED or any other inspector about what we are doing, rather than focusing on the children's learning and development. So sorry to be very honest but even in the best nurseries, everything is a s.... show.

So yes, this is why I don't want to work in a nursery/ school anymore. I simultaneously feel upset and disappointed about studying in this field which doesn't help me to find a different job and for forcing myself to continue working in misery for years. I'm 30 now, and changing careers would have been one of the last things I wanted. I feel so lost now as I don't know what else I can do. The transferable skills of a nursery worker aren't great. I keep sending my CV around and I either get rejected or no response for even basic admin or front-of-house jobs.

Utterly disappointed...

Consider retraining in a health course at uni as you don't end up in billions of pounds debt.

Consider training as a teacher.

Consider setting up as a childminder.

All your experiences will count for those.

Or think about what you really want to do and work towards that.

Nanny?

Totally get you! I’ve worked in nurseries and they can be so boring and super long days. Love the children and teaching/ development like you said but it’s not a great environment to work in from my experience.
Why don’t you look at private nanny jobs? Depends where you live I guess and your family commitments but it’s definitely an option with your experience and qualifications.
Live in or out, can be great salaries and travel with families too. But all depends on your circumstances of course.

How about doing child nursing at university? Sounds like you would be great and you can do a few agency shifts for extra cash, or do bank HCA shifts when you’re in the second year of your course.

Openreach have a brilliant apprenticeship schemes and hire at about £30k starting salary to people from all walks of life. You have many transferable skills believe it or not!

It sounds like you're done with childcare jobs, but in case you're not ... I know several people who love their childcare jobs. They either work in small pre-schools (so not fancy ones, but in churches or village halls, and with shorter hours than nurseries) or in a larger childminding setting, ie with childminder + 1-2 assistants so it's a different experience to lone childminding. Of course there's still Ofsted compliance required and paperwork to do, but the most important thing is the care and development of the children and whilst there are still frustrations, they are much reduced compared to what you describe. On the other hand, I know the pay isn't great.

Could doing an admin role for a nursery, school, leisure centre or activity centre be a route to consider, as your childcare experience would be seen as a bonus?

Tutor Assessor for EY/ Childcare Apprenticeships?

Speech therapy assistant
Play therapist
Nursery nurse working in health visiting team or school nursing team

How about training as a play therapist? Two nursery staff I know went into this in the NHS and it has been a really springboard for them into healthcare careers.

Most of your post is about why you don't like childcare. All completely understandable. But there's nothing about your strengths and interests. It reads as if you're in quite a negative and unfocused place. Could you be coming across to potential employers that way?
Do you know what you're good at and (therefore) what jobs/careers would suit you? Your approach sounds quite scattergun, usually career changers - at your stage in life - are looking for a specific new career, not "anything but this". I think you need to spend some time working out what you want to do and then work towards it, whether that's work experience /training /apprenticeships. If you can afford it a career coach will help. If not look at those career quizzes.

I can totally relate! I am currently working as a nursery assistant for a nursery BUT on a zero hours contract, they call it 'casual worker'. The main reason I am still hanging in there is I love children. But I hate the toxic environment among staff members as well as the management, they absolutely don't care about the staff, and even deny that it's understaffed. I get treated differently because of the title - casual and I don't have any access to any benefits, even when I am sick, I MUST return to the nursery and work! Everyday working for this nursery is a torture, I feel like a slave, overwork and not valued. Things they said on the interview turns out to be completely different from what I actually can get after I joined. I always work like busy bee, help whenever I get asked to by their 'permanent staff' and the nursery manager, even I offer to reduce my lunch break to cover some of the staff so that they can have their break, was happy to change my shift when the nursery manager asked me to. I thought they would return the favor if I help more. But when I need a day off, I get told a big 'No' from the nursery manager. What they only care about is themselves! I am going to hand in my resignation soon as my overall well being has gone downhill in such toxic environment. Don't expect any work life balance exist in this sector.

I feel your pain!!! The reasons you gave for wanting to leave are exactly the same as me. I worked in mainly private nurseries in the baby rooms as I'm a bit older than most of the other staff and it is stressful having to keep an eye on them, come up with a suitable curriculum based activity, nappy changes, feeding etc. I decided to retrain in 2021 in medical administration (having to deal with paperwork, keeping up to date records, being organised, policies, confidentiality) all are transferable skills

I went from childminder to working as a early years worker in family hubs. Crap pay but a nice flexible job that's not too stressful. It did involve working with children running playgroups but very different to child care.

I now work in a library and I love it

community nurse nurse in nhs health visiting team…it’s band 4 so up to around ?27k…..no weekends….generally 9 to 5 ….but flexibility for hours….33 days leave plus bank holidays ….depending on the trust….often have the option to be seconded to complete degree in children’s nursing

Nursery nurse

I totally get you. I am in a similar situation. I am L3 nursery nurse and I am studying 3 year business management degree (at open university) and I am looking for admin jobs but I haven't get any reply.

I am desperate to work as I haven't been working for a long time.

To be sincere I am thinking to do an apprenticeship level 3 or degree

*Construction
*Civil Engineering
*Interior Design
There are the areas I love but it's difficult to get jobs where I live.

But I found that is easier to get jobs on the following areas:

*degree apprenticeship Occupation therapist

• health and social care or management to work within that field. I want to do some type of apprenticeship because I get paid while working and studying and gain experience.

I would like to know if you have any updates. I hope you find your path. I feel that when we are young there is a tendency to do what we love but we don't think in the long term but will only learn the issues in that career with time and experience.

This is what Intend to do. I hope it can give you an insight.