Becoming a parent is one of the biggest transitions in our lives and adjusting to new ways of working can feel challenging when trying to balance home and work. So how can you positively manage your career in the racing industry as a parent?
What are your options?
It may feel difficult to imagine returning to work in the racing industry when you have a family and you may worry about how you will be able to work alongside caring for your children. This can feel like a big step change in your career, however there are many opportunities for you to explore.
Going back to your job
If you are currently in work and on maternity leave, do talk in advance of your return with your employer. Take the opportunity to chat about when your return will be or explore possible adjustments around your working hours or responsibilities if you feel are worried as to how you may fit in work around childcare. Employers understand there is often a conversation to be had when employees return back to work after a period of leave. Remember your employment is a two way arrangement between you and your employer. Before you meet, think about positive solutions and ideas you could suggest that may work for both of you. Having a session with our CATS careers coach could help with this.
Looking for something new
Have you left your previous role to start a family and are now wondering about a career change in the industry? Considering what else you could do? There are so many career opportunities in the racing industry, have a look at https://www.careersinracing.com/careermap/ to explore the many roles the industry has to offer and get some career inspiration.
Would it be a good time to retrain? A period of time away from work and the lifestyle change of becoming a parent can sometimes give you the opportunity to spark new ideas around what you want next in your career. There are a raft of training courses available within the industry to help boost or progress your career, explore the CATS Training Directory https://www.cats-racingwelfare.co.uk/training-directory/ and the BHA’s Racing 2 Learn https://racing2learn.com/ for a flavour of what’s on offer. Need help with the cost? Racing Welfare can offer training grants to eligible individuals to help with training course fees.
Who can help you?
Who do you know that can help you find out more about different roles and work settings? Your network is bigger than you think. Your family, friends, old work colleagues or people you know in the industry are a great source of career information. Talk to them, send them a message or meet up for a coffee. Reaching out to those you know can really help you move forward. Specifically, those who can tell you more about their work and opportunities they know about, or introduce you to others that can. Through your network you may gain insight into different careers and how to get into them, develop new contacts to help in your job search, or be in the right place at the right time, ready for upcoming work opportunities. If your network is falling short, try joining industry associations, membership groups or attend industry events to get connected.
Be prepared
Take some time to think through what you have to offer, your experience and knowledge is valuable. When juggling the demands of your role as a parent, it can sometimes feel tricky to remember your role in your career. Set some time aside to reflect on this. Think about your career so far, what has gone well for you, what have you achieved, what work and industry knowledge do you have, think about the progress you have made so far to build back confidence in your value. Try making a list of your skills and strengths both work related and personal. You may find it helps to get feedback from others, such as family, friends or a career coach. Racing Welfare CATS offers a free to download guide to help guide you through this process https://www.cats-racingwelfare.co.uk/professional-development/
Managing your home life
If you have been off work for a while caring for your child, it’s possible you have taken on the lion’s share of the domestic tasks at home. Consider who can help you to get back to work. What can you do more of or what can you do less of to support your return to work? Who do you need to have a conversation with to adjust the balance? Share more of the load with those who can help. Explore suitable childcare options well in advance of returning to work, this will help you focus better on your return. When you feel confident and happy with who will be looking after your children when you are at work, the rest may fall more easily into place.
Get inspired
Talk to people who have made a successful return to work after becoming a parent. There
are 13 million working parents in the UK (workingfamilies.org – Modern Families Index 2020), so you are not alone. Discovering how others have navigated this transition, and made it work, can give you insight, inspiration and motivation to do it yourself. Talk to other colleagues you know in the racing industry who have had a family and see how the process worked for them.
Getting ready to return
What might you need to brush up on to get ready for your return? Before you start back, build your confidence by offering to go in to work for a few hours. This enables you to keep in touch with people at work and can help you feel more comfortable with returning. If you are exploring a new career, you may need to update your CV or consider some training courses. You also might consider helping out for a morning or afternoon in the setting you want to work in. Try arranging some job shadowing or offer to volunteer. This can help you connect with employers, boost your work confidence and CV, or simply enable you to try out new career ideas before you make the move.
Go for it
Lastly, it is important to understand taking career breaks to raise children (or any other caring responsibility) is a normal part of a career journey. In fact, it is expected, for the well balanced functioning of our communities, economy and labour market. You should not feel you have to give up on your career or that you have put yourself at a disadvantage in any way by having a family. Many people return to work after becoming a parent, complete with all the experience and knowledge they had already built, but also with new, strengthened levels of resilience, initiative, communication and organisational skills that being a parent demands. Just know you have so much value to bring to the table, as you carve out your best working life alongside being a parent.
Get support
If you are looking to return to the horseracing industry and would like career support, call the Racing Welfare Support line on 0800 6300 443 for the free CATS career coaching service. Or for more information on managing work and family or how to return to work successfully, check out the ‘Toolkit for Returners’ https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/help-and-support-for-returning-to-work and Working Families https://workingfamilies.org.uk/
Advice by:
Zoe Hendricks (RCDP MCDI, MA CEd & C)
Career Coach
WorkClever Careers
Career Coach for CATS Racing Welfare
