Are there any Teaching Assistants on here? Just a few questions

hilstep2000

I work for East Sussex, so I don't know if it's the same for all the country. When I got my job 9 years ago, you needed no qualifications, but now you are expected to have at least NVQ Level 1. Our Head has recently been advertising for new staff, and she is amazed at how badly spelt/punctuated the application forms are, so make sure that you fill them out really well!

Pay is frankly, appalling! I am a TA2 and earn £12,00 pa. BUT, that's not the salary! You only get paid for 46 weeks a year (47 after 5 years) I actally earned £9,080 last year. (This year I've reduced my hours for health reasons, so it's half that!) We don't get paid for school holidays, but the salary is split into 12 payments, so you do get a payment in August!

We do different hours, depending on circumstances, but my hours are 8.45 - 3.15 with half-hour for lunch, I do a lunchtime duty the other half, and you will probably be expected to do the same. Most of our TA's are full-time (30 hours a week) but we are a mainstream school with loads of special needs children. We currently have 28 TA's!

Saying that, it is a very rewarding job, you will be able to help your own kids with their work, and you get the same holidays (except pehaps Inset days, when you have to work, and they don't!) so you don't have to worry about child care.

My advice is go for it, you'll find it very rewarding.:T :T

alice's_mum

Hi I was in the same position as you; I was a PA to Hospital Med Director, before DS was born, and had been a legal secretary for years before that. I got a job in a local primary school office, which is the best of both worlds. I get to use all my PA skills, and get school holidays off.

Now obviously school office jobs are like gold dust, but if you ask if you could volunteer some time in the school helping out in the office, usually start of of just doing photocopying and running messages, but in time you learn the computer system - this is usually SIMS. This will stand you in good stead when applying for jobs. This is how I got into it.

It's worth a try and usually the pay scales are a bit better than TA's and there is time when little one is older to work more hours and become school bursar, usually on a Senior Mangement pay scale.

Hope this gives you another option - it also involves less re-training.

jayarr_2

just something i picked up on, sorry if anyones said this already, you may not be able to do a level 3 without doing a level 2 first, i certainly couldnt when i did mine

looby-loo_2

All the advice so far looks really good.

We employ 21 teaching assisstants in a secondary school. There have been changes recently. The government have set up a career structure for TAs, Level 1,2,3 and 4, level four being just lower than QTS (qualified teacher status) and able to take classes or groups. What Levels 1 & 2 do is somewhat open to interpretation - all are Level 2 at my school but the school across the road has nearly all Level 1 doing the same job as far as I know.

I welcome people wanting to be TAs who will perhaps stay a few years as there is continuity for the students and staff - they become part of the school. Training is provided and they can work up to Level 4. Several recently have been young graduates hoping to go into teaching after one year and although they are well qualified I know they will leave, just get them trained and they're gone! The best TA I work with has been there for years and until recently had no qualifications - the students love her to bits because she is local and relates so well to them. School is now enabling her to get English and Maths qualifications