Relying on food banks to keep my young family

I am in a very serious amount of debt, relying on food banks, welfare grants and Universal Credit advance payments to survive and keep my young family. I believed that teaching was a lifelong career, and this was never suggested otherwise during my application for university or during my studies.

The way that supply teachers are paid a full month in arrears makes for unstable living conditions that don’t meet the demands of the cost of living. There is also no additional financial support for supply teachers should they fall ill, require planned or emergency surgery or treatments, on maternity/paternity, caring for children or dependants, that permanent teachers benefit from. Being a supply teacher feels like a thankless and far underappreciated job.