Exploring Career Paths In Working With Children
Working with children can be an incredibly rewarding career path. From teachers to social workers to paediatricians, there are many professional roles that allow you to positively impact young people’s lives. Here are some of the main career options in the childcare and child development fields.
Rewarding Careers In Childcare And Development
Teaching
One of the most common careers working directly with children is teaching. As a teacher in a primary or secondary school, you will be responsible for educating and guiding students through the school curriculum. The day-to-day work involves preparing lesson plans, instructing classes, assessing student progress, and building relationships with students. Teachers help children academically as well as socially and emotionally. It takes patience, creativity, and organisation to be an effective teacher. In the UK, you must complete a teaching degree and training programme to qualify for state school positions. The average salary for a primary school teacher is £24,000-£35,000 per year.
Social Work
If you want to support vulnerable children and families, consider training to become a social worker. Social workers are employed by local authorities to work with children in need of help or protection. Their duties include assessing risk in the home, creating care plans, coordinating services, supervising foster and adoptive families, and supporting youth in care. It is often challenging emotionally, but also highly rewarding to empower young people facing difficulties. In the UK, you must complete an undergraduate or postgraduate degree in social work to enter the field. The average salary for a children’s social worker is £24,000-£34,000 annually.
Childcare
Another option is working in a childcare setting like a nursery or crèche. Early childhood education and childcare workers care for babies and children up to age 5. Your daily tasks would involve feeding, changing, bathing, and playing with infants and toddlers. With older children, you would supervise activities, teach basic skills, and encourage social development through games and interaction. Patience, energy, and creativity are essential. The average pay for nursery workers and nannies ranges from £12,000-£21,000.
Paediatrics
If you want to work with children in a medical setting, consider a career in paediatrics. Paediatricians are doctors who specialise in treating children from birth into young adulthood. As a paediatrician, you would assess child development, diagnose illnesses, prescribe medications, and treat issues like infections, injuries, genetic disorders and chronic conditions. Excellent communication skills are key to connecting with both young patients and worried parents. Becoming a paediatrician requires many years of intensive education and training after medical school. However, it is a prestigious, in-demand speciality with excellent job satisfaction. Paediatricians earn £75,000-£103,000 on average per year.
Foster Care
While the above are established careers, there is another incredibly impactful way to make a difference for children in the UK – becoming a foster carer. Fostering provides a nurturing home environment for children who cannot reside with their birth families. Local authorities are always in need of foster families to care for youth in social services.
As a foster carer, you would welcome a child or sibling group into your home, providing daily care, stability, and support. Fostering is not a career path or job – it is more of a calling. With dedication and compassion, you can change a foster child’s trajectory in life. If you have love to give and room in your home, consider becoming a foster carer.
Working with children and youth can be deeply meaningful. From teaching to medicine to fostering, there are many ways to make a difference in young people’s lives.
