Dilemma - Exciting job with good work/home balance or exciting new role with mega bucks??!

[andthatshowsueseesit]

I'm a teacher. After years of working towards a good balance between work and home as well as getting chances to be creative, I've got it. My 'dream job' starts in June: teaching at my current (very good) school 3 days a week, very good for proximity to home, great boss PLUS now one day per week working for the County as an advisor in my subject. This will give me the chance to run courses, advise other schools, coach and mentor, and work for my own school as well as others. I also have 1 day off a week. My 2 dcs are school age and nursery age. Downside is that money is mega-tight as our LA is skint: the extra job is only for a year as that's all they have funding for, but strong poss of it being renewed if they can find more money next year. I'm working in a role which is worth much more than I'm being paid.

But now a job has come up locally in an academy school (meaning they have mega-bucks to invest in improvement). The role is exactly what I'm qualified for but all the work is within the same school: teaching, coaching, observing, mentoring, initiating and creating new things. The big bosses are excellent (heard from a colleague)- very forward-thinking, positively encourage new ideas and creativity; there's a real 'buzz' about the place... and the pay is fantastic: 12K more than I'm on now

Trouble is... if I apply for it and get it (and I am very well-qualified for it, without wanting to preen too much!), I would royally piss of my current Head as he really fought for me to get my current role, and I'd piss off the LA too, thus very much cutting myself off from ever working for the LA again in this kind of role.

I've got a feeling my ego is running my dilemma a bit - part of me wants to be paid well for the job I know I can do well: dh would be able to go part-time from the job he works mega-hard for but doesn't really like much, and this would make life easier with the dcs as he's very hands-on and would do the shopping, organising etc if I had to go f/t.

Advice / virtual slaps welcome!
(I've name-changed in case I get 'recongnised' but I am a regular)

dont think pursuing new role will necessarily close la doors,may open doors being in different role

Don't think the academy role would necessarily stretch me more - I'm well-qualified for it because it involves everything I'm already doing in my present role but in a new setting with possibly a more forward-thinking body of staff.

Both opportunities are very exciting and, like I said before, if the LA role hadn't come up, I'd definitely be applying to the academy. I see the secondment as definitely stretching me: I'll be involved with loads more school and staff than any singular role would provide, including a kind of 'trouble-shooting' role in certain schools and departments which I haven't yet had.

anyway, my mind's made up now after reading and considering all these very helpful posts and I feel very excited

what are you going to do?

see post 5th March 21:53:00

I know what other posters were saying about applying anyway, but it's quite 'public' applying for posts and it would send out the wrong message to my existing head and new LA boss-bloke. Plus I'm very competitive and if I was called for interview would go all out to get it. I couldnt just do it for experience and then withdraw during the day or something like that. Teaching interviews are very full-on

sorted!

ok thanks

Jmo:

Go for the secondment, it has the potential to open doors.

Do you really want to work for an academy? Depends on the neck of the woods and the academy in question, but are their hours family friendly and will the academy's school holidays be the same as your dcs when they go to school, even if they are in the same county?

sorry, see you've reached a decision.

Good point Heated, even though I know what to do now.

and my dad's not too well at the moment... at least with my present job, I know I can take time if I need it as it's very family-friendly. I'd feel really guilty taking time in a new job. The childcare issue wouldn't be so bad as dh would be more flexible if I changed jobs but that wouldn't help if it was my dad who I needed time off for.

anyway...