To want a TA job

[QuestionAndAnswers1]

Calling all teaching assistants! How are you finding it? Is full time full on? How do you cope with the poor pay - I’m worried it isn’t enough money to justify the work?! Please share any tips or reviews!

This is accurate unfortunately

Get a job working for the civil service - they offer part time and term time if you want that. Much better paid and better prospects.

Only do it if youre extremely patient, can handle things not going to plan and children being rude, and actually enjoy spending time with and are able to see the positives in children who aren't well behaved. Generally TAs are supporting the more challenging children.

@SnowyRock I could handle that, just not sure I can handle it at that salary! Equally it’s so hard to find something else that fits around parenting!

@Zanatdy I looked on the website and there was nothing near me that I was either way too inexperienced/untrained for OR involved working at a prison 😂I will keep an eye on there though, thanks. I did look before and again there was nothing I would be able to get at that point either.

@QuestionAndAnswers1Why do you think being unqualified means you can work in a school? Maybe choose a career you are qualified for and if you are not qualified, it’s low wages I think.

@OhDear111 the schools near us don’t require qualifications for TA work, and for a teacher, it would be 9 months. I had that in mind actually but was concerned about the negativity in forums. Other careers I’m interested in are so expensive (and hard to manage the training schedule with kids) so yes I am worried it’s low wages. Especially without the confidence and available time to really focus on a career that doesn’t involve training. Weighing it all up and wondering what’s best or if there are jobs I haven’t thought of which tick the boxes well!

What area are you in?

@jmh740 do you mind me asking why? Only as I’d rather not say purely for identification purposes (paranoid 🤣) - I can PM you thought if you have any job ideas relevant to area?!

Well you're not in the South Devon / South hams area as our schools do ask for qualifications. It may not be in the advert but in the job specification and / or job description.
and even if they weren't asking for qualified you will not get short listed if x amount of qualified apply.

even our nearest school has level 3 with 1st aid for the after school club.

Or you are def applying for 1-2-1 TA jobs as many people will not apply for them.

Tho you would prob get a job in our specialised SEN school as they always always need staff.

My area (NW) went through a spell of asking for graduate TAs. On minimum wage, naturally, doing planning.

My DD was a TA. She had a first class degree and a masters. She is single, no children. It was her first job after university. She supplemented the salary with holiday jobs such as on play schemes or forest school. She eventually left after a year for a job in the charity sector that paid more.

@OlderGlaswegianLivingInDevon yes I know many TAs locally who were unqualified and untrained. And to be fair, I would struggle to spend money on a qualification for such a low paid job.

What qualifications do you have / what experience do you have re careers / jobs / what did you do before children ?

What did you do before kids @QuestionAndAnswers1 ? Is it something you could get back into?

TAs in my school are frequently called on to cover when teachers are off ill. This means you are in charge of a class for minimum wage. It sucks. Badly.

@QuestionAndAnswers1Spend money getting qualifications for a better paid job then! Except it won’t be term time only!

My sister is a TA in her child's school. Which is the "holy grail" to some.

When it comes to events it's a lot more than just the nativity and sports day (which my sister is actually given permission to attend albeit she may not be able to stay for the whole of sports day - which is a full afternoon off of school premises). So far this year she's missed her DC class learning assembly, music concert and family reading morning. She hasn't been able to volunteer for any trips / attend the after school bake sales or events. Granted a lot of working parents would miss all these things too but it's frustrating as my sister is in the vicinity and her DC knows this and is often disappointed mummy can't come along.

My DN also has to attend before and after school club everyday as sister works 8-4.

There is no scope for annual leave in this particular term time contract and even when DN puked in class one afternoon, they weren't happy for my sister to go off one with her sick child (she's a single parent). She was expected back in the next day even though child had to follow the 48h rule.

@Crunchymum sorry what do you mean “expected back in” - it’s a hard no situation surely! I actually think that’s really bad.

I also think primary schools needs to stop holding family events given they won’t let their own staff go in many cases? I have been to every single one, all the shared learning, all of it. I have left every single one feeling sorry for the other kids crying because their parents are both working and can’t go.

in term of my most recent role - it was something you don’t have to have qualifications for but it’s demanding in a whole different way. It’s a real shame because I honestly think TA work would be a good option for me right now if it weren’t for the pay (and that’s despite all the negative comments here). I just need something financially viable which fits well!

Add in that parents have to work to make ends meets so they send children into school who they know are ill. Even if you have children of your own ( I had 2) you will catch every flaming germ going.

I think you’re coming across as a bit of a fantasist OP. You want something that pays pretty well, gives lots of flexibility but doesn’t require any training, despite being out of the workforce for years? Lots of people on good salaries graft hard for years (including when their kids are little) to get to a level of seniority to have more control over their diaries. Likewise, lots of people in jobs that don’t require much formal training and have lower salaries are forced to accept that they are at the whim of someone else’s timetable. Most working parents, no matter their salary or seniority, have had to miss things at school - none of us are shouting that they should therefore be cancelled! We just accept it’s part of needing 2 working parents to live.

I think you need to decide what’s more important. If you want to be 100% available for your kids then you probably should suck up your marriage and stay unemployed. If you want to leave your marriage you probably need to accept that you’ll need a job. Wether you use some of your wealth (you must have some wealth, living mortgage free) to pay for training to get a job that has more personality flexibility then being a TA, or wether you don’t do any training and settle for a TA job, accepting you have all holidays off but less flexibility in term time, only you can decide.

Agreed. I don't think you're going to find the unicorn job that you are seeking.

If you want to dip your toe back in, could you look into exam invigilation? It's freelance, so you could choose your own days. Only available for a few weeks a year but there's a shortage of people who'll do it.

Won't or can't? In most schools, it just isn't going to be possible because there isn't enough staff.

The problem is events are held to satisfy OFSTED quite often.
If you let TAs go to them you also have to let dinner ladies, receptionists etc. cover starts to become very complicated.

Just interested in what areas have schools that let TAs out for their child's events in case its near me. I would suggest looking on the Local Authority jobs pages or if an academy at the schools websites.