To think the general public don't understand the job role of a Teaching Assistant?

[notyourmummy]

This might turn into an "I'm a TA, ask me anything" and that's fine.
Having been speaking to both my family and parents at my children's school, I've realised that there's still a common misconception that TAs only make displays, mix paint and wipe snotty noses... what do you think a TA does at your child's school, how much do you think they're paid and what hours do they work?!!

I am paid pennies over £10 an hour (or about £13k a year after being pro-rated). I am top of my payscale, having been there for years, with no chance of pay progression. So disheartening. New TAs with no experience get paid very similar. I have a Masters and decades of SEN experience..

What TAs need is the potential to progress beyond what is pennies above minimum wage, to reflect their skill-level. According to the NEU support staff pay has fallen 27% in real-terms since 2010. This is unacceptable.

I agree, but is that a dig that teachers don't? Don't start- this is not what the thread asked. As a teacher of 28 years highly skilled, highly qualified and totally under paid and under appreciated by the public I object to your implication.

So do your PGCE and become a SFL teacher (Senco in England?).

I was a TA for a few years and when I realised I was doing a lot of the teacher role I decided to teacher train! Shit work load but more money! I applaud my TA. They don't get paid enough but neither do I!

So many teachers on this thread getting defensive. You have a right to say you deserve more money, as do TAs. It takes nothing away from you, stating that TA roles are severely underpaid and misunderstood.

I’m a TA on grade 3 £10.40 an hour. I like the job. It fits with my kids school hours. I refuse to do anything outside of my paid hours including my lunch break. You need to have a bit of backbone and maintain your boundaries because there is no end to the possible jobs that can be done in a school. Some teachers don’t mind being quite assertive in a way that you wouldn’t get away with in other workplaces. I have no qualms about saying no or being flexible but making sure I take the time back.

Sickness absence in schools is pretty high. I turn up every day so I certainly feel I’m doing my bit.

The public don't need to think about what people do for their jobs. It is a free country after all.

MN always think jobs should be paid according to some kind of fairness rule..

I think it varies, like all job roles.

Some at my school are worth their absolute weight in gold and take on incredibly challenging behaviour fit very, VERY little pay.

My TA literally just sits there unless I constantly and explicitly give her instructions. She’s a 1:1 but genuinely will just go and sit down on a chair unless I directly tell her what to do. I find that this is happening more and more because we have a lot of inexperienced agency staff.

I was a TA for 3 years and it was exhausting but not a patch on teaching. I cannot believe how underpaid it is though - it’s absolutely criminal.

The general public don’t understand what most jobs entail though, so why would a TA be any different?

My son has a TA for one-to-one about 50% of the day. We're lucky that the same TA has followed him up the school and now knows him really well. Aside from family she's the most important person in our son's life. She's a goddam Angel and we thank our lucky stars for her every day....

A rather odd comment. Shouldn't the public have some idea of what goes on in schools funded by the tax payer? Shouldn't fairness come into the pay equation somewhere?

What TAs need is the potential to progress beyond what is pennies above minimum wage, to reflect their skill-level

Isn't that called doing a PGCE and becoming a teacher?

It's not at all odd. We've all got problems. I don't need to wring my hands over every low paid job out there. Most of us are struggling somehow. I very much agree that teachers should be paid more.

For any job where you can be personally directly responsible for 30 children at one time you should at least get 25k and that is the minimum. 30 children depending on you, at some points it will be more depending on the situation. I can't believe anyone actually thinks it's OK to pay someone less than this when they have that level of responsibility. Kost people reading this will never dream of being in charge of that many children alone.

Teachers, with their additional wualificarions should be on higher of course but TAs should be on a lot more than they currently are.

Yes, we've all got problems, but 'what is the government doing with all that money I'm giving them in tax every month' is something I'm strangely curious about. Might affect how I vote in the next election, for instance. 🤔

I am a TA but many want to become teachers without doing degrees and I think that’s where the entitlement sets in. It should remain a graduate profession. I’ve done a degree via the OU with the view of completing my PGCE but now I’ve got to this point I’ve had a change of heart. I want out of education altogether. I was working with a bottom set GCSE group all day today on my own and I am exhausted.

Because they are traditionally female, they are grossly underpaid, like nurses and carers, it's absolutely disgusting.

It was never meant to be a career or a profession but is a support role so pay is going to be low because school budgets should be spent on qualified teachers.

When did you last look at what is required to be a qualified TA? You said you are a former primary teacher - you've just demonstrated the snobbery that a PP mentioned. You might like to take a look at what they have to do now to be qualified and what they now actually do - and then ask yourself if your view is up to date and fair

Puffalicious · Yesterday 20:26
get off your high horse. I wasn’t talking about teachers. I was talking about TA and they deserve a lot more than they are earning now.

At many schools, the SEN children are taught separately in small groups by TAs. I take reading, and social skills intervention groups.

That teacher sounds very unprofessional. She shouldn't be getting a child to 'fetch you' or contact you in the evenings when you're off sick.

Can any TA’s confirm what their annual salary is as a permanent school employee in the UK?

@RoseMarigoldViolet I am a level 2 TA. I have a degree and have also completed many courses relating to my current role. I work 5 days a week, and although my contract is 30 hours a week I do work more than that as I always have to be there early to set up and plan, then leave late as there are always parents that need to speak to us etc. my take home pay every month is £1115. Not sure what that equates to annually as our pay is divided in a way that means we get paid during the school holidays too.

I used to be a TA and my husband is a teacher.

I think that what happens in general at primary schools is widely misunderstood by most people. I think there’s a misconception that it’s glorified babysitting with a bit of learning sprinkled son on top.

TA’s pay is just awful I don’t know how they get away with it. Well I do, it’s because it’s a hugely female dominated field. A TA in my sons school has been there for 9 years and just left for an better paid admin job 😢.

I hear that support staff had the opportunity to strike though but not enough people voted?!

The ballot was hugely disrupted by the postal strikes; only about half of the TAs at my school received their ballot papers, and who knows how many got stuck on their way back? Of those that did vote (46% when the government requires 50%) the result was overwhelmingly in support of strike action.