To think that my supply agency have been very irresponsible?

[DrSeuss]

I have worked for a supply agency since Easter 2014 and normally, I love it. No prep, no marking, I can leave a school whenever I want. I teach secondary history but have two primary age children and am an ex Cub leader so said I would do primary as well. I also agreed to be a TA if nothing else was available. This has always been fine. I have done a number of one day primary placements and a two week spell as a primary TA. All went well, the reports to my agency about my work were very positive. Being flexible got me more work.

Yesterday I took a call asking me to work as a primary TA today at a school I know as my son swims there. I readily agreed as no other work was available. I arrived this morning to discover that I was actually in the attached special school in the autism unit. I have worked with older children with ASD in mainstream so agreed to give it a go. However, the children with whom I have been working today were profoundly autistic. A number were non verbal, some were in nappies. On realising this, I told the class teacher that I did not have any experience of this but would try to help as much as possible.

All day I have felt like everyone was getting short changed bar the agency. The teacher did not have proper help. The children received their care from a novice who was trying to find her way. I felt very uncomfortable and anxious all day as I had little idea of what I was doing. I tried my best but I am sure I was not up to standard. Hopefully, good intentions went some way to getting it right and I carefully followed all instructions.

I have just got off the 'phone with the agency who frankly didn't seem that bothered. Not too worried about giving me duff information. Not bothered about the sub standard care of vulnerable children. Not bothered that the teacher had sub standard help all day. Not bothered that I had had a very anxious, stressful time. I conclude the conversation by remarking that I doubted many of their employees would be OK with changing an eight year old's dirty nappy as I did this afternoon! This got a few more non committal murmurings.

I would be especially interested in hearing from parents of children with special needs. Would you be OK with an untrained but well intentioned mother of two looking after your child today?

If just for a day or two, then yes, that's fine. If the school were using a supply agency, then they would not be expecting specialist training.

I think new people (especially nice, well intentioned ones like you ) can be a nice and stimulating change for children.

I am a teacher and have a daughter with ASD, by the way.

Even "sub standard" (though I think you're being hard on yourself there) help is better than no help at all. Shouldn't be the case but it is incredibly difficult to get support staff in special needs schools. There are lots of things you can do to help ease the teachers workload and I'm sure she appreciated you being there, sometimes just having a "body" of any description is invaluable when you're trying to manage a class of children with complex needs.

Don't get me wrong, your agency were being utter chancers getting you to cover this, but I guarantee the school will have been overjoyed to have you, as if you hadn't been available the staff would have been plucked from other classes, leaving everyone struggling, it has a massive domino effect.

Thank you both for the encouragement! I felt so out of my depth all day. If the Autistic Spectrum were numbered one to ten, I had previously dealt with children who would be threes or fours! These children have profound specialised needs. I have never dealt with such children before. I was never sure if they could not do what was required eg put shoes on, or just wouldn't. Sometimes the teacher informed me that the child was just trying me out! However, I did learn a lot about using picture cards to communicate and about presenting the object before the instruction eg, put the jug of juice on the table, then say, "Who wants juice."

(Parent of child with SN, at special school, but verbal and no continence needs)

A TA is following the instruction of the class teacher. A new TA would be following the instruction of other TAs too. Nobody could work with children with SN if they needed experience before they were allowed to.

If you were calm, friendly, approachable and willing to take instruction, then you'd have been in some way helpful even if you don't feel like it.

If I were you, I'd ask to go back again. You might find you really like it

Haha yeah they're no different in that respect, they'll test your boundaries, after all, why have a dog and bark yourself
I teach in what is probably quite a similar setting, I love it. I'm still learning, will be until I retire I'm quite sure!