Senior Teaching Assistant

 Senior Teaching Assistant –Sherwood Park School (Sherwood Hill Campus)

Salary £29,586.00 - £33,960.00 (point 11 –point 20) pro rata equivalent to £25,448.43 - £29,210.73 pa Contract type: Permanent Hours: Full Time – 36 per week, Monday to Friday, Term Time Only plus 1 week

Closing Date: Monday 4th November 2024

Start Date: ASAP

Sherwood Park School is an all age (3-19) Foundation Special School for pupils with Severe/ Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulties and /or disabilities (SLD/PMLD), as well as pupils who are on the Autistic spectrum (ASD) with complex needs.

We have high aspirations for all our pupils and we pride ourselves on putting the child at the centre of everything we do. Our curriculum ensures that our pupils, who come from a wide range of backgrounds, have exceptional opportunities to excel and access exciting opportunities in school, and beyond school, to develop their physical, social and emotional well-being.

We are looking for Senior Teaching Assistants who can support and enable our pupils with autism to achieve their potential.

Our school is based across two campuses (one catering for the needs of pupils with autism and severe learning disabilities and the other for pupils with profound / severe and complex learning disabilities) and we can be flexible in terms of matching your skills, experience and personality to the right class.

As a Senior Teaching Assistant, you will have experience of working with children/young people and have the ability to:

• effectively lead and manage a class team and organise learning programmes and environment in the absence of the class teacher.

• work with a range of pupils/students 3 -19 years old who have Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and severe learning difficulties/complex needs, which may include behaviour that challenges us.

• contribute to assessment, planning and the recording of pupil’s/students work and to modify or adapt the activities as agreed with the teacher to achieve the intended learning outcomes.

• communicate and work effectively and supportively as a member of the school team including students, parents and carers, other staff and external agencies.

• learn, use and extend knowledge of the ‘Makaton’ signing system as well as other communication systems including PODD, Core Vocabulary Boards and AAC.

• physically support pupils including those in special seating and wheelchairs and support students with their personal hygiene and toileting needs, any medical needs by administering medication following appropriate training and with eating and drinking and where necessary feed pupils, which may include PEG feeding.

• Work as part of a curriculum team to further develop a specific area of the curriculum and contribute to the wider school as part of this team e.g attend team meetings, support with the upkeep of specialist rooms, contribute to the planning and delivery of training within that curriculum area.

Experience of supporting students in a classroom environment, including those with special educational needs is desirable, but we have lots of experience supporting staff to do well from all sorts of backgrounds. Most importantly we are looking for the right person who can demonstrate a respect and ambition for our pupils– we look forward to hearing from you!

For an informal discussion about the post please contact a Member of the Senior Leadership Team.

Please note applicants must demonstrate how they meet all sections and sub-sections of the person specification for this role.