Life after teaching

Making the decision to leave teaching was one of the hardest things I have done in my career. I loved what I did – working with the students and seeing them progress, the lightbulb moments and their personal progression – but I needed to leave. 

There are some quite terrifying statistics around about how many teachers are choosing to leave the profession. According to a recent survey by the Association of Teachers and Lecturers nearly a quarter of new teachers don’t think they will still be working in teaching in five years. 

I had no idea what to do next, or what options were open to me. Where could I make the best use of my skills and experience? I remember feeling like I would have to start all over again. I realise now that I was massively undervaluing the skills I had gained and demonstrated in the classroom.