SEN Teaching Assistant

Immediate start, long-term to permanent, full-time, Monday to Friday 8:30am to 4:15pm

£100 to £110 PAYE per day, weekly payment

Interviews arranged ASAP

In one class, you might support a child who talks through every thought out loud and, an hour later, a pupil who has never used words at all. Can you shift between the two without either one noticing the effort?

A growing specialist autism school in Surrey needs SEN Teaching Assistants. The school is recruiting more than one, and the start is immediate.

About the role

I am currently working with this school, which teaches a mixed-needs class spanning the full range of autism and ASC, alongside pupils with SLCN and pupils who are non-verbal or pre-verbal. As a TA, your morning might start beside a pupil who talks you through every step of a task, then move to a pupil who shows you what they need with a hand on your arm. Both are speaking to you. Only one of them is using words.

What you will do as a SEN Teaching Assistant

• Support pupils across a wide range of autism presentations, including verbal, non-verbal and pre-verbal pupils
• Adapt communication and tasks in the moment, pupil by pupil
• Use visual supports, objects of reference or AAC, depending on how each pupil communicates
• Read early signs of distress or overwhelm and help a pupil settle before it builds
• Work one-to-one and in small groups, following the class Teacher's plan
• Record what worked for each pupil and pass it on at the end of the day
• Provide personal care with dignity, as part of every role in the school

Who this role suits

You do not need a formal qualification to apply. What matters more is:

• Experience supporting autistic children or young people, whether in a school, at home or as a volunteer
• Comfort working with pupils at very different communication levels within the same session
• A graduate in psychology, education or a related subject who wants classroom experience before teacher training or a clinical route
• An aspiring Speech and Language Therapist, Occupational Therapist or Psychologist who wants time with pupils who communicate differently
• The right to work in the UK and a willingness to complete an enhanced DBS check

Hours and getting there

TAs work 8:30am to 4:15pm, with a 30-minute lunch break. There is no on-site parking, and a park-and-ride is five minutes from the school. The school is commutable from Godalming, Woking, Farnham, Cranleigh, Dorking, Camberley, Aldershot and Leatherhead.

Apply

Interviews are arranged as soon as your CV reaches me.