Vacancy: Teaching Assistant (Early Years)

School

Castle Mead School

Job reference

CM/EYTA

Closing date

9.00am on 26 July 2022

Interview date

1 August 2022

Start date

1 September 2022

Contract type

Permanent

Salary

Grade D £18,933 - Grade E £19,698 pro rata depending on experience and qualifications

Hours

TA: 28.5 hours a week plus MDSA: 2.5 hours per week. 39 weeks per year.
8.45am – 3.15pm plus additional hour on a Thursday (planning and preparation time, with Class Teacher) from 3.30pm – 4.30pm

Location

Lowbourne, Melksham SN12 7ED

Role overview

We have vacancies at Castle Mead School in Trowbridge for Early Years Teaching Assistants. The successful candidates will join a strong friendly team, whose vision for children’s individual needs is at the heart of every aspect of school life – every child matters. The Nursery at Castle Mead School cares for 2 – 4 year olds, and accepts Universal and Extended funding. There is also the provision of a breakfast club and after school club which are paid-for services for parents who need longer childcare days.

Castle Mead’s Early Years team is highly professional, experienced, and committed. The successful candidate will become a key part of this close-knit team, and contribute to the life of the whole school. The role will involve:
• Working with groups of individuals within all curricular areas under the direction of the Senior Early Years Teaching Assistant, in a variety of tasks to develop the physical, intellectual, emotional and social skills of the children
• Assisting with learning activities to develop children’s knowledge through support and encouragement
• Providing opportunities for children to work towards the Learning Outcomes
• Being involved in the preparation for activities, ensuring that appropriate materials/equipment are available, and assisting in clearing away afterwards
• Supporting the preparation and adaptation of teaching aids, games, worksheets etc as directed
• Meeting pupils’ pastoral needs for praise, comfort, encouragement, reassurance and care
• Taking responsibility for the welfare and hygiene of pupils, including changing and cleaning as necessary

The role will be a good fit for you if you are:
• Inclusive, passionate, and principled. These are our Trust core principles, and everyone who works for us embodies these in their own unique way
• Experienced in working with pre-school children
• Able to support all children with their learning and development
• Happy to work in a team, as well as being able to use your own initiative

You will need to have the following skills to be really effective in this role:
• Trained in First Aid, or willing to undertake training
• Able to communicate well both verbally and in writing with children and adults alike
• Level 3 qualification in Supporting Teaching and Learning

There are main and senior positions available within the team – please indicate on your application if you would like to be considered for a senior role.

How to apply

To apply for this role, you must send the following items to kthain@themead.wilts.sch.uk by the above closing date and time. Any applications that do not include all of this information will be incomplete and we won't be able to consider them:
1. A completed application form
2. A letter detailing any additional information
3. A video (no longer than 2 minutes) or a written explanation (no more than 500 words) describing the knowledge and skills that are needed to be an excellent Teaching Assistant (Early Years) - and how you know you've got them

Other information

We’d love to show you around our school. If you would like to come and visit us, please call the school office on 01225 768641 to make an appointment.

Candidate Briefing Pack >

Application Form >

Equality & Diversity Form >

This role will involve contact with children and the post holder will be engaged in regulated activity relevant to children and will be subject to an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check before appointment is confirmed.

This Trust is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.

All posts involving direct contact with children are exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. However, amendments to the Exception Order 1975 (2013 & 2020) provide that certain spent convictions and cautions are ‘protected’. These are not subject to disclosure to employers and cannot be taken into account. Guidance and criteria on the filtering of these cautions and convictions can be found on the Ministry of Justice website.

Please note that by submitting an application, you acknowledge that we reserve the right to view any publicly available information published on social media platforms as part of our shortlisting process, in line with current KCSIE guidelines.

Child Protection Policy >

Code of Conduct >

What we offer

We recognise the value and contribution every member of our staff makes to our schools, and in return for their dedication and commitment we provide:

An ambitious and vibrant place to work, with enthusiastic staff and children in all of our schools
A highly organised and very supportive team
High quality professional development opportunities from Day One, including a National College account, where you can access thousands of training courses online for free
A clear vision with purpose and values that are supported by all our staff
Unlimited, free access to the Employee Assistance Programme which gives all our staff confidential support and guidance whenever they need it