I hate my job as SEND teaching assistant

[fluffy71]

I hope I won’t get flayed alive for this but exactly the above. Started in KS1 at a mainstream school in Sept to work one to one with a child with an EHCP. There were two jobs advertised to look after 2 children 1-1. Turns out the ratio is actually 2 adults to 3 children apart from an hour at the start and end of the day where it’s 1 adult with all 3 children. The third child has no care plan in place so the one to one support the other two are entitled to is being shared with this third child. I understand now that this is the norm in schools due to shortfalls in funding. I thought this would be manageable as I believe children need to develop independence and learn to play with others and not have a 1-1 breathing down their necks all the time. The staff at school are really lovely and devoted to all the children. Though I just feel exhausted. I feel like my heart is racing all the time, trying to manage their unpredictable and often destructive behaviour. All three children are developmentally around 3 years below their chronological age. School are happy with the job I do and I do my very best for the children every day but I don’t know how much longer I can carry on. Though leaving would badly impact the rest of the staff and all the children in the class but I’m starting to dread going to work. I am a parent and have worked with older students with additional needs before so didn’t go into this role totally blind to the demands.

I think you are probably both very conscientious and very capable at your job, which is why you are finding this hard. Attempting to keep one child, never mind three, regulated in an environment where it’s practically impossible for them to stay regulated for long, and then on top of that actually get some work out of them is bound to send you into a high state of anxiety as you probably feel your aren’t succeeding as the child isn’t managing what you know they are capable of work wise and isn’t managing to stay regulated as it’s an impossible ask. You are probably highly empathetic as well, so you will be picking up on the children’s anxiety too.

If you are on a temporary contract that might explain why you are not included on some emails and possibly why you are not in some meetings, although if you are supposed to be helping a child meet targets you should be. EHCPs are often poorly written and make it very hard for them to be enforced or for targets to be aimed at. Ideally there would be something other than the EHCP that is detailing the smaller baby steps towards each of the targets on the EHCP. It sounds like some of the planning for these children is not happening or, if it is, it’s not being communicated to you so you can make use of it.

Sadly the push for inclusion and a lack of funding has meant that many children are being failed by the education system. These children would, more than likely, do better in a different setting. Even the best TA in the world cannot make an unsuitable environment work for a child. No matter how many sensory breaks, how perfectly you time a comment, how perfectly you word a comment, how masterfully you distract a child or how perfectly you deal with handovers you can’t take away all the things about the set up that don’t work for the child. The chances of them getting into a different setting are probably slim. You are being expected to do so, so much, yet your remuneration and status is so low. It is an utterly crazy set up.

From what you have written it appears the school are acting illegally
If it states in the EHCP the child should have a 1::1 for x amount of hours that's exactly what should be happening
My son goes to a special school there are only about six kids in his class and about 4 staff if you enjoy working with kids with SEN maybe look for Job in a special school?

Probably because they are in denial?
My son is 14 and has been in a special school since reception
But initially I wanted mainstream most parents find it difficult to accept their child needs a special school
In hindsight it was the best decision and my son gets so much more out of being in a school that meets his needs but it wasn't easy to hear in the beginning.

I wonder how many people chose mainstream as opposed to having no choice.

@x2boys I loathe the term 'parents in denial' as it comes across as so judgey. All children are still developing at KS1, including children with SEN, so it can be hard at that age to know what the best setting is. Also in my experience, while there are some good SEN schools, there is little academic education in the majority and staying in mainstream with the right support may be best from a future pathway point of view and leaving school with possibilities of FE.

I adored working with SEND dc until I burned out and the crash was horrible. The turnover of staff is so high, not because the dc are hard work but because of untenable conditions and a lack of support. Trying to do a job with your hands tied is horrible.

The feeling of walking on eggshells is incredibly exhausting. Your body is always in crisis mode.

Don’t let guilt hold you back. You can be generous with your notice to give them time to replace you, if you want, and if you can. But not at the cost of your own MH. I gave an employer months of notice but they still only started advertising to replace me when I left, and tried to guilt me into staying.

I absolutely adore my ds’ TA and I communicate directly with her and show her all the notes etc because the power dynamics in schools are bonkers. And in planning meetings, I’m not shy about saying “TA might know more about that, or I’d like to consult TA on that” and more recently she gets asked to sit in on the meetings. She’ll be getting a huge bunch of flowers this week (for show) and a voucher (quietly) to say thank you. I’ll do anything I can to keep her in that school until ds is finished!

If a special school is suggested its nt suggested.for fun
An educational psychologist will have assessed the child and they will have all sorts of 9ther assessments there are nor enough special school places as it is
So parents are not going ti be advised t9 think about a special school place unless it's thought it's needed
And you kids are still very little but i know so many kids who have Been failed in mainstream,
Obviously it depends on the child but it's better for a child imo to be fully included in a special school than babysat in mainstream i

Also there are different types of special school clearly my child isn't going to benefit from one that offer more formal education such as GCSE,s andA Levels ,but they are not going toi send an academically able child to the type of special school my son attends either.

I've got experience of both settings as my children are not young anymore and without doubt academics are way less thought about in special schools so it's a balancing act for parents. Many autistic children, for example, do very well academically in mainstream with the right support and if they had gone straight to special school in KS1 then those options for FE wouldn't have been open to them. My point to previous posters is to say just put people in special school is not as simple as it seems.

I don't disagree but autism as you surely must know is a huge spectrum and many people with autism will also additional co morbidities ,learning disabilities being one of them ,a special school in KS1 for an academically able autistic child is very unlikely to be suggested
But for some autistic children it might be appropriate.

If 1:1 is detailed, specified and quantified in F of the EHCPs, I hope the pupils’ parents know 1:1 isn’t being provided so they can take steps to enforce the provision. If 1:1 is detailed, specified and quantified in F of the EHCPs, the school is leaving themselves and the LA open to legal action.

Getting a properly specified and quantified ECHP usually takes tribunal and then it's not implemented so SEN!SOS and JR. So we go for specialist school. Even for academically functioning ASD this is 5 GCSEs, no A levels.

High needs parents exist because the EHCP is not being delivered. OP is burnt out. Probably because support is not being delivered as it should be. Shes not even seen the EHCP. Impacting on DC, parents and her.

Imagine how parents feel when their DC 1:1 is used to support someone else. They may have involved paid for EP, SALT, OT at thousands to get a decent specified and quantified EHCP. A bit like paying for a gardener to focus on your garden but then the school comes along and gets them to cut your neighbours grass and trim their bushes rather than yours because they're more of an issue to them. But you paid and your DC needs are not being met.

The red flag is the need for DC to be 'independent'. This actually means left without support. There is no scaffolding and watchful waiting. It's literally being left to sink or swim because your paid for 1:1 is otherwise occupied. DS2 was left to doodle at the back of the class so he didn't disturb others. Not freelancing to earn more money for themselves but providing free labour for the schools they work in.

Given my experience of tribunal and failed specialist school for DS1 I was done with it all with DS2. He has not meeting expected achievement and suffering poor mental health from being consistently told off. He had an EHCP so LA funded internet school and I was as LSA. He is academically able ASD/ADHD. He got 11 GCSEs, went to brick 6th form and is now doing masters degree in mechanical engineering.

OP you should have sight of EHCP. You should adhere to EHCP. You need written directives where your employers want you to do different. Eg 1:1 specified for 25/32 hours in EHCP but employers said XYD. They're breaking the law, not you.

But you are not paying for it out of your own pocket like a gardener but I can see the frustration

Lovely empathetic leadership. I hope you go far in your career. Education needs more people like you. 💐

Issue is many TA jobs are now solely to cover these 1:1 children. In the school my sister works that’s all the TAS now do. No budget for additional class Ta either.

@fluffy71 An older woman I knew had a 1:1 TA job and she was seriously injured by the child she was 1:1 with- She never returned to work.

It's just not worth it.

It's a shame, as she was a lovely, empathetic woman who loved children- but this isn't the 'cozy' role that some people assume it is.

I used to volunteer at son's primary school, it was really enjoyable, but those days of helping with reading, and art, and making things are long gone, so it seems.

It's as if what you are being asked to do is just to be a ''babysitter'' to three children who aren't expected to learn anything, you are there to stop them hurting the other kids or each other- and you can get caught in the crossfire.

It's not fair on anyone.

Hope you get another job soon where you also feel safe, unstressed and supported.

@suburburban I did pay for it out of my own pocket for private EP, SALT and OT - came to about 5 grand. To get properly specified and quantified EHCP. But the school ignored the EHCP.

What course of action do you advise when a school ignores EHCP.? I went to SOS!SEN who issued JR. Do you think this was wrong?

This thread demonstrates the stain on staff. I assure you this is nothing compared to the stain on DC and their parents. What should we - staff, parents - do next!?

That's irrelevant it's a legal document, so if states in an EHCP that the child should be getting XYZ with their own TA that's whst the child should be getting otherwise, the school are behaving unlawfully
The school can't just decide that they are going to use the TA funded by the child's EHCP elsewhere because they are short-staffed.

That's not the problem of the children who have a funded 1:1 through their EHCP.

It’s a tough, under appreciated job, and not everyone is cut out for the amount of emotional work it also involves. Don’t feel bad about leaving, you could earn more at Aldi, unfortunately. For those TA’s who do the hard work, they are much appreciated!

I’m going through this at the moment as a teacher in a mainstream environment and it’s so hard when the school isn’t geared up for it

Have heard that recruiting TAs getting harder and harder but school funding squeezed already and there isn't any money to offer higher wages so what should schools do? Ultimately these jobs should be paid better, with more support and training. As it is the current system relies on the goodwill of people like the OP who really should put herself first. Those expecting you to work miracles with inadequate resources won't care if your physical or mental health is affected, you really must put yourself first.

It's unsustainable.