Am I doing the right thing?

Not seeing your family is no way to live. I don’t think you have anything to fear from COVID now that most people in the UK have been vaccinated.

I think the danger from children in schools has been much exaggerated by teaching unions etc.

Numbers. I teach a maximum of 10 students here. In the UK I taught 360 children a week.

I don’t understand how the risk is higher in a UK school than a Swiss school.

It won’t be long before we get more freedom to travel in Europe so I’d hang on, I think. A bird in the hand and all that.

I haven’t seen my older son and family for two years now and don’t anticipate seeing them this year either. I don’t like it but I tell myself to be patient and hope it pays off.

It wasn’t mandatory for me . I haven’t t got one either due to exH saying it was not necessary aNd me being spectacularly stupid.

Oh that's a shame you didn't pay into a pension. Here in the UK it's mandatory (or at least it was when I started) and I am still paying into mine.
I really hope things work out, unfortunately only you can decide. Go with your gut on this.

Oh, sorry about the pension. If you don't resign would you have to sign up another year? Surely soon you can start travelling between England and Switzerland(?) again?

I think this time around I am only examining for A Level and the company I will be working for don't tutor for A Level, only up to GCSE.

My family live in my house in the UK, so when I go home, I will be living with them. Which in itself is a mixed blessing, but better than never seeing them.

No teachers pension due to not being able to afford to pay into one for a long time (post divorce ex H didn't pay any child support - ever). So only state pension to come.

IF I decided I was doing the wrong thing, it isn't too late to retract my resignation. They are struggling to find a replacement. But I would have to be certain I wanted to stay, and I'm not so...

Just be aware that if you are doing private tutoring and exam marking, the exam board you mark for must be informed because there’s always a potential clash of interests.

Have you tried tutoring? With kids having missed so much school this past year a lot are going to need extra tuition to catch up. My dd is looking for another teaching post with the situation in her school with a poor headmaster and going into special measures making it is not a good place to be. Very low morale and staff leaving even with no jobs to go to. If she cannot get another post she will still leave and do supply and tutoring. It will affect her pension but she cannot take the stress anymore. Sometimes other considerations are more important GagaJo as you have discovered. It’s a brave step you are thinking of taking. The risk of Covid is now considerably lower in this country so you could come home. Be happy.

I do sympathise with your need to return to the UK to see your daughter and grandson but I do think you are making a mistake in not seeking work in English schools. The risk of covid infection in schools is low, and if you are fully vaccinated you are protected.
You must protect your teaching pension; I don't know how many years you have paid in, but giving it up or reducing it close to retirement is the worst possible time, so I was advised. I taught fulltime until I was 65 and the last few years were very hard, but divorced with a mortgage to pay, few savings and parental 'inheritance' lost in care home fees, I had no option, and now, ten years later, I am so relieved I stuck it out.

I gave up classroom teaching over ten years ago. I literally walked out of a classroom one day and never went back. You don't say if you have yet given up your job, but are just thinking about it? Although you have found alternatives?
A few years ago I realised I could have accessed my pension from 55- I don't know if this is still an option. So I now live on what I earn through my part-time teaching job (I work for an authority that offers its own out of school tuition service) which I love, and my pension which is not enough to live on but gives me a good work-life balance.
The Covid situation is easing (not yet over by any means) and there are opportunities for teachers to work outside schools, depending on your authority.
Handing in my notice to quit from a job I hated, to finding a job I loved, took only a matter of weeks.
Trust me, your skills and experience are needed but you also need to have a good think about the priorities in your life. Maybe this is a big opportunity for you so don't waste it by looking back- grab the chances you now have with both hands.

You could maybe consider teaching in the adult education sector ? Assuming your subject is transferable.

However if you could find a job in a school i would say with both jabs you could feel reasonably secure ?

There will always be work for supply teachers, especially if you are willing to cover Secondary School classes. A friend who had mainly taught Infants gave up two years ago and has done several sessions in Secondary where she found she was greatly appreciated by the management.

I think it's a hard choice bought on by Covid. I have been through a similar thing but not due to Covid.
Five years ago I gave up a job with the local council which I had done for 30years. I did it to become a F/T carer for my dad which I dont regret. He died a few years later so I was in the position you are contemplating. I was 55 with no mortgage and substantial ,for me,savings. I travelled which I dont regret either.
My savings were not enough to retire on so needed job to pay bills. I had several,all part time. Some better than others. My last one was very high risk covid wise and I was highly vulnerable so a lot of my savings were used as income last year.
At the end of last year I obtained a full time post with the civil service but it's only for a year. The salary is good but stress high.
Many times over the past few weeks I have thought longingly about happier work times and wondered whether I will last the year in this one. It could just be settling into new job.
That however is the problem.
Obviously your financial situation is something you know best.
Work wise there are jobs out there but it's harder,they are less secure and more demanding with highly qualified people applying for them. This will probably be worse when furlough ends.
I'm 60 later this year and like you have what feels like endless years until I retire.
I dont want to wish my life away. On the other hand I'm tired! I really have to work hard to summon up the energy and enthusiasm for the endless team enthusiasm.! Ideally I would have a simple job where I left the stress at work but they are hard to find! It frequently crosses my mind that a decade or so ago I could be retired this November!
Work wise I expect teaching in UK has changed,and I doubt for better.
I understand your family concerns. That said I havent seen my daughter in Surrey since last August!
From someone who is now in the position you may be in I advise caution. Goodness knows what I will be doing if after a year this contract ends. I can say hand on heart that the older I get the thought of working in a situation where I am unhappy is much harder than it was 20 years ago.

Gaga what are the statistics for secondary school teachers catching Covid from pupils?

From what I've read, admittedly not in great detail, if you're vaccinated you'll be as safe as any other worker.

It would be a great pity for you to give up classroom teaching, and to jeopardise your financial future.

Obviously there is more to your decision than I was aware, you have to do what is best for your health.

I agree with*Bluebell*, you wouldn’t of seen your family whatever job you were in so I’m not sure why that’s made you decide to give up your teaching pensionable teaching job.

I currently work into a number of schools in the UK (not a teacher) its definitely not the same as going into a shop, but I feel safe now I have been vaccinated. I actually think you are doing the right thing, I have seen you talk about your current situation and if you dont mind me saying it is obvious it makes you unhappy. I think the pandemic has taught us that life is just too short for that.
I think things will look very different in a couple of months within schools. Would you consider supply further down the line, I know a couple of teachers in their fifties who have chosen that option.

The schools are very well looked after Covid wise now, they had to be to be able to carry on, all the teachers in U.K. seem to be working well with it I don’t understand why you wouldn’t chose to work in a school here
Covid is here to stay if you ve had your vaccinations I would think you are as safe in a school as you are in a shop