Don’t know what to do about TA and her behaviour

[RickOShay]

I work in a primary school in a lowly position. On two separate occasions I have seen a TA manhandle children in Year one, so children of five or six. She pulled one child off the ground by his wrist because he pushed into the queue and another child she pulled back by the hood of her coat when she turned away while the TA was telling her off.
Should I take this further?

I reported a TA when working as a teacher for raising a hand to a student. Parents had told me this and CCTV corroborated it. The TA was suspended.
You know what you're supposed to do OP. Do it!

I get it's not easy but it's actually your job. You don't need to decide what to do about it, that's for the HT, Lado or governors but when you dont report it you are failing in your duty of care. So do it. On Monday.

OP...please take the advice on here about reporting as a matter of urgency. It's not up to you to determine if it's a safeguarding event or not, that's what the MASH team do. If you can't go through the school reporting process then go directly to your local MASH. Remember, if you don't report then you have become an accomplice in the eyes of the law. You have been given some very good advice on here...take it.

You've said a few times on this thread about your own feelings, 'I feel sick', 'I'm scared', 'I hate the TA', 'they all dislike me' etc but no mention of how scared you feel for the children (even your own children) who are at risk there.
Isn't their protection worth more than your unwillingness to report because it's a bit daunting.
Come on, be the adult here.

Yes, I have spoken about how I feel.
I agree that I should report and I will.
The only reason I am still there is I feel responsible for the children, on a personal level it has been awful.

It is scary to report someone but remember she has brought it on herself.

FGS, I find it hard to believe you work with children. If you see a child being harmed you report it. There should be no delay and you certainly don’t ask strangers first.

What is it you are always emailing the head teacher about? How have you managed to get yourself into a situation where nobody in your workplace likes you? Are you sure you aren’t after the TA position yourself? You really do come across as thinking you know how to run the school better than everyone else. If these many concerns you have about the school are real, I am amazed you still haven’t figured out that you go to the chair of governors.

I agree blueberry. Anyone who works in a school is required to have yearly safeguarding training. All school policies relating to safeguarding should be read on at least an annual basis. Policies should include what to do if you have a safeguarding concern relating to a colleague. I’m having difficulty believing that someone who works in a school is so clueless that they need to ask MN for advice.

Blueberry I agree but it is nerve wracking to report a colleague. Maybe some people need reassurance they are doing the right thing.

For those saying it's not high level safeguarding issue you are wrong. I have been trained with the police team who informed us that any unwarranted and uninitiated physical contact between an adult and a child is classed as assault. Even if the adult thinks they have good reasons. If they are not comforting or stopping a child from making dangerous physical choices there is no reason for contact.
OP if you get no support from the slt your safeguarding posters should have numbers to report and you can make an anonymous report to the NSPCC again the number should be on your safeguarding team posters around the school.

Are you a member of your union? It sounds like you are being bullied too, OP? Is it better perhaps to get them on side, report it to the governors or the LA first if you don’t trust that you’ll get a fair response from the HT?

I think I was being bullied by the previous headteacher and lead teacher. I didn’t join the union as it stopped when there was a reshuffle.

I should have done. I am scared, because I know how things can be twisted and have experienced this.
I would not have asked strangers for advice if the situation was more straightforward, but I do appreciate the strength of feeling, and come what may I will be reporting this, I might phone the RSPC first for advice.

What’s the rspc?

NSPCC

Read your safeguarding or whistle blowing policies to give you information on who to tell.

If you don't have a good relationship with other ta and teachers then contact the school governers.

Please report straight to head (not to DSL-that doesn't apply when it's a whistle blowing incident, which is anything involving a staff member)
They then have to refer to the LADO who give advice and will take/help them to take whatever action is need next.
Whistle blowing working this way is designed to protect the whistle blower, rather than others in school knowing anything about it, which invariably happens when you speak to others.

Going back to your first posts, how can you be 'not popular' amongst the teachers, and indeed how do you know?

I'm a teacher and awful as it sounds, I barely know any of our midday supervisors as they are only in an hour a day and children make their own way to the hall.
Why are you emailing the head so frequently, is it a parent or lunchtime supervisor?

You shouldn't need to ring the NSPCC. As part of you role you should of had meetings about safeguarding and what's the protocol if a child tells you something you feel you need to report or if you see something that you think needs reporting. Tough time or not it shouldn't matter children in your care are the main priority. You should of gone to head straight away with any sort of concerns about how the children are being treated by a member of staff. They are the vulnerable ones not you. You can walk away and maybe find a new job they cannot.
Do the right thing on Monday go in and speak to the head first thing.

I have a very good colleague who had my back during the worst of the bullying, but I don’t want to involve him in this. There are a few lovely people at the school, but they are in the minority, I do not say anything to them.
I email my concerns about the treatment of the children. This will not be the first time I have reported a safeguarding concern, but that wasn’t involving a colleague, it was about something a child disclosed to me.

So leccy it is in my capacity as a lunchtime supervisor that I email the head. For example the last email was about one of the children, who I feel is not being supported so his behaviour is now affecting other children. He needs help, not punishment, otherwise the vicious circle continues.

Have you an educational qualification/training of any sort?
I'd be miffed (as a teacher and parent) to receive an email from a lunchtime supervisor about 'behaviour concerns'.

Why do you email the head about the children? No offence but you’re a lunchtime supervisor, that’s not your job. Is that why you’re disliked? Because you keep overstepping?

Possibly. I wouldn’t say I was universally disliked, it’s more the lead teacher who hates me, the rest are indifferent.
I could be overstepping the mark, and I feel that myself, but it’s difficult to know what to do after witnessing some of the things that happen at lunchtime. I have never complained about a colleague.

Overstepping is what we have here I think.