Lost teaching job due to cuts. Childminding something I could do?

[Kelly1999x]

I’m a primary teacher and due to cuts to funding won’t have a job come September. There are no jobs in my area due to cuts. I have a 2 year old.
I have no savings. My bills are £1500 a month.
I’m so stressed and don’t know what to do.
Is childminding profitible? There is a demand in my area. What else could I do for work? Has to be 9-5 and not weekends because I have no one to look after my child😔

Hi
I'm sorry to read you have lost your job , I'm surprised as I thought a teaching job would be safe as houses as there's such a demand for teachers . Have you looked into working in children's services ? Usually advertised on local authority websites . Or maybe senco ? . With your qualifications you will find something in no time. Good luck

Another thought , have you looked at private schools?

A lot of childminders I know are very busy due to the extended funding - I can imagine it could be quite profitable if you could get yourself set up whilst keeping costs low.

I would look into cover teacher work. We're always desperate for cover at my school and always the chance it will turn into a longer role.

Lots of teachers will be loosing their jobs in the next few years where I am too due to the falling birth rate and cutting intake numbers.
Could you travel a bit further out for work? Online jobs - check out Twinkl they recruit teachers. Private school? Tutoring 11+?

Can you convert to secondary? Or look at civil service jobs?

Childminders are in demand here in Surrey, my cousin is one, but she has children 8 till 5.30/6pm as the parents have to work (teachers ironically). In the summer holidays she has older children and not the term time ones. At first she didn’t charge for holidays or if child didn’t go to her because they were sick, but she now charges for 2 weeks holidays and even if they are sick, but she has bills to pay. You need to get proper contracts drawn up.

Have you looked at LA jobs in your local area? There are often posts available where your experience in education would be relevant. This SEND commissioning role or a leaving care personal advisor for example:

Prison teaching?

I was a childminder. There will be some set up costs but it can quite lucrative. The funding pay isn't great but you can top your earnings up by having some before and after schoolers.

There's also tutoring as an option?

In the meantime, can you sign up to substitute teacher agencies, or apply to be an invigilator?

My childminder was a former teacher and she found the paperwork side easy so she could offer the funded hours.

I’m a teacher and have been a childminder. It was ok when mine were small. There was a lot of demand and I was choosy. I think the council course was about £300.

You can make a decent wage as a childminder but it’s very different from being a teacher. You are not part of something - you are solely responsible for everything.. no break at lunchtime whilst they have their lunch then on the play round with others. No shared planning/anyone to bounce ideas off.The day does not stop, you are the DSL and first aider, dinner lady, bum wiper, cleaner, accountant, bookkeeper etc etc. It also can take over your house and the lines between home and work are blurred unless you have an outbuilding or a conservatory you can close the door on. Depending on what council your with - now with funding you might only get a termly payment - does that work for you? On the positive - the hours are long but the money can be good. You can pick your own hours and work time time only. There is a huge demand and unlike in a school you can vet the kids and families and only work with those you like!

if you want to do it get the ball rolling sooner rather than later as registration normally takes about 3 months.

9-5 childminding isn't going to work for a lot of parents - 8-5 as a minimum

What about doing school pick up/drop off - mine charges £20 per day for both before/after school. Works 730-830am and 330-6pm. Term time only obviously. She has a fair few children attend (she's always fully booked with a long wait list) and I'd say she earns at least £3k per month

As others have said, as a childminder, you will need to offer hours that work for parents. This will almost certainly mean offering from 8am at the latest and going on until 5.30pm at least.

Anything less than that, and the majority of working parents won't be able to use you.

Look at being a Functional Skills Tutor? Or a Teacher Trainer? A lot is remote, online.

I think how much leeway you have with your hours depends on demand in your area. Where I live there's a dire shortage of childcare and someone offering 9-5 would be inundated. But if there's decent availability locally you might struggle unless you offer longer hours.

One of my son's classmate's mum is a childminder and she brings her childminding brood with her to pick up.

I'm an EOTAS Tutor after 20 years in primary teaching. Love it. Currently on £30 ph but not paid for holidays/illness. Wish I'd have left teaching sooner tbh!

You would be an extremely popular childminder id look into the course, this could
Expand into a mini nursery setting if there is a market gap in your area. Good luck!

The demand is certainly there for childminding, because many have left the sector in recent years. However it can be quite intense and leave very few boundaries between your home and work life. But it will also have the advantage of providing for your two year old!

You will have people telling you that you ‘must’ offer X, Y and Z in terms of hours, but in reality you can probably set the hours that work for you and it will appeal to someone, as you don’t need many families and are restricted by ratios anyway.

Take a look at PACEY and also the Tiney website. Hope that helps.

Forgot to say, there’s a new registration category for childminders who work on non-domestic premises, so it doesn’t necessarily have to be in your own home.

My child’s childminder was a former teacher too. I’m sure it was fairly lucrative - we paid something like £80 a day for 8am-5:30pm (London). He went two days a week and she was always full. I think you can have three children under three, and three more aged three to eight?

So you could always mind two more little ones per day as well as your son, and three more. Depends on whether you want that many children / can find that many / also negotiating their free hours and if you want a day off.

I’d say get the paperwork done and give it a go.

My child’s childminder said she loved it, we’re still friends. She’s gone back to teaching SEN now though.

She didn’t work five days a week, and she collaborated with another childminder for company and also it was great as then there was a bigger peer group of friends for my DS. She got ofsted outstanding.

Childminding would be ideal, but not 9 to 5. The minimum you'd need to offer would be 8am to 6pm. Many that I know offer 7am to 7pm.
Parentswho work office hours need to drop off, commute and pick up