"Gold dust" school jobs

[Smartsub]

I am currently trying to recruit for support staff in school. I need kitchen, staff, admin and TAs. All term time only and all school hours. The jobs I've previously seen referred to on here as "gold dust".

We are getting hardly any applications and those we do get a poor. Admittedly the money is poor, but that's always been the case. Until a couple of years ago the difficult part was sifting through the 100s of applications we'd get for such jobs, now we rarely get more than a handful.

What's changed?

@Benjispruce4

It sounds like your school is using you appropriately. I’ve met many who have been given whole class responsibility even in primary school. It’s standard round here for HLTAs to be given their own timetables for secondary, which includes to planning, marking and accountability.

I’m well aware of my limitations. I’m educated to A level standard and have 15 years experience in schools but I am not a teacher. I do cover sick teachers at short notice too because our budget is so small and supply teachers are so expensive now. Apparently they charge extra to plan. This will only lead to more schools asking TAs to step up.

I’m in primary btw.

@Benjispruce4

You might be aware of your limitations but many aren’t and end up completely exploited and burnt out. I have known HLTAs far less educated than yourself. It can be a rewarding job if you’re used appropriately.

I do agree that standards are slipping, in teaching too. Some of the students we’ve had on placements lately, don’t have a grasp of primary maths. 😬

Current job advert for Band C. In Hampshire (which is not a cheap county to live in) All the support jobs are either band C or B which pays even less.

Teaching Assistants are required to work with students with a variety of additional needs, including ASD, Physical Disabilities and Cognitive Difficulties.

Grade C. 20 hours per week £9,135 - £9,621 (19,265-£20,290 FTE)
25 hours per week: £11,420- £12,027 (£19,265 - £20,290 FTE)

So no additional SEN responsibilities does not pay anything like £25k.

I do wonder if this is the Life Long learning sector Teacher training. I have PTTLS (preparing to teach in the life long learning sector), but dropped out of CTTLs (certificate, not really being offered any more but what you describe) and the DTTLS course (Diploma).

It is to train teachers for adult education, independent schools, FE colleges, workplace training etc. ie for teaching in non-compulsory state sector. It might be for someone who was a motor mechanic and now wants to teach professionally. At the time I took my course there was not parity. But there should be. And without the snobbery that you are showing., By the way I am, even without that, better qualified than all teachers at my school.

I agree schools need to up their game. One school I worked for systematically lost all of their experienced TAs (special school) by treating them appallingly

On paper, yes.

Reality - 39 weeks plus 4-5 weeks holiday pay. Then based in something like 39 hours a week but reality is you're not paid 'full time' but only for school hours (sometimes a tiny bit either side) with unpaid lunch and morning break. And you're still expected to do staff meetings, etc - some schools will try to get away with that not being a paid hour unless pushed too. Many TAs will work after school and weekends, and in holidays, doing extra bits - might be typing up an observation for eyfs, creating resources for the classroom, planning their intervention group, etc.

So that 'FT Salary' is then significantly reduced.

All our full time TAs are paid for 8:30am - 3:30pm.
They have a 30 minute lunch break and 15 min morning break, unpaid. The staff meeting time is 1 hour, this allowed them to have a longer lunch twice a week, rather than extra pay.
They are expected at all INSET and meetings.

Our TAs are treated as valuable teaching staff though with no 'them and us' between them and teachers. We all share the same staff rooms, break out spaces, get invited to the same staff get together, etc.

But there is no getting away from the fact that most TAs (and LSAs) are doing way more than their allocated paid hours in schools, be them level 1 or level 4 HLTA.

@spongedog

It is a level 5 diploma leading to QTLS which can be translated to QTS in any school. It is “supposed” to be just for FE teachers but I know of primary TAs who have been accepted onto this course for this September. They will end up with QTS at the end of it despite not having a degree.

Snobbery has nothing to do with it. I believe that teaching should be a graduate profession. Full stop. The government clearly has other ideas though.

Echoing what others have said. Most of us who have managed on the shit wage before just can’t make ends meet any more. You can earn more working in supermarkets or many other roles.

I was paid from 9-12 then 1-3.30pm. Despite the children stating at 8:50am. When I (along with the other LSAs) asked to start earlier and be paid for it the answer was no.
When I went on a residential trip for several days I was still paid the same hours yet I was on call 24/7.
They really do take the mickey.
Also if I didn't leave the building on my lunch I was constantly being asked to do x and y.
Yes it's the same for teachers but they are not paid just £10,500. Plus they get to work with the well behaved, high achieving kids unlike all LSAs where I worked. We never had the benefit of that.

What does the qlt mean? Already completed teacher training?

Why would any teacher want this?

Eg my friend has a degree in law and 2 masters.
She works as a supply teacher but whilst now has a wealth of experience has zero teacher training?

What could she do?

@ICanSmellSummerComing academies can employ non qualified teachers if they have knowledgeable in a particular area. If you have a degree you can do a one year PGCE to qualify.

Knowledge!!! Bloody predictive text!

QTS is qualified teacher status.

Thanks I can't understand why someone with a pgce wants this extra thing

I had a school admin job. It was great when my DCs were young enough to need me at home for the holidays but old enough so they could cope with being home alone for half an hour after school (early secondary).
once they didn’t need any level of support in the holidays it was no good to me cos it meant I couldn’t take any time off in the school term unless for medical appt and even then it wasn’t an easy process.

Now they’ve both left school it would be a pointless job - plus I had to be there for 8am and finished past 4pm so also no good for parents w primary school aged children either unless the partner drops off.
The money wasn’t awful for what it was, but there was no flexibility and dealing with demanding parents - no thanks!!
Am now in a p/t role to get some different experience and hope to get back in to almost f/t in at some point.

i agree w the PP who said these are jobs for those who only need a p/t income. And no good if you need any type of flexibility.

A PGCE is to qualify to be a teacher. It’s in addition to any degree. The other traditional route is a degree in education.

Ah, I remember that.

I got my first job in a school due to having the lower qualification, with the understanding that they would enable me to take the L5 so I could teach post-16s in vocational/functional skills.

After I got there, there was a bit of a delay. Some 'it's really busy, so you're needed all five days right now and we don't have time to fill in the forms right now, can you arrange to start in the 2nd cohort?'.

Eventually, I received an email saying 'Support don't need qualifications', along with a second email two minutes later 'asking' for 'volunteers' to take the compulsory Easter Revision Sessions (ie, teaching concepts to kids who hadn't understood them in the previous four years and seven months and helping 'tidy up' missing coursework) because the teachers needed a break as they'd worked so hard since Christmas and they were sure that the Support Staff understood just how important this provision was for the children. No pay. No TOIL. Every day, Monday to Saturday except Good Friday and Easter Monday. FOR FREE.

Unfortunately you are sounded rather ridiculously snobby. Most degrees now aren't worth the paper they are written on. Whereas a fully qualified Motor mechanic with a professional qualification and no degree is likely to be a much better teacher in that field than you or I. My dad was an FE teacher for years - hotel management and catering. He had a good professional qualification. He later gained a degree but had been teaching for decades before. It doesnt sound to me that you really understand much about the non-compulsory sector.

@spongedog

Teaching assistants with little more than GCSEs should not be teaching whole classes. There is a loop hole here which will enable them to do so.

You call it snobbery, I call it a dangerous devaluing of the profession entirely.

@spongedog

But the course is being abused isn’t it? If you’re teaching a trade within FE that’s an entirely different matter.

If you’re using this course as a route into primary and secondary teaching whereby you’re teaching core subjects then you really must be educated to a certain standard. How is it okay to teach A levels when you never got past GCSEs?