Advice on becoming a TA

[Boogiewonderland321]

I have signed up with a TA agency who are looking to place me in primary, SEN or before/after school clubs. I have trained to be a nursery nurse (in 2014) my children are late teens now. I think going into TA work would be hugely rewarding but I am worried as the agency said I may be out of work between Sept and Dec as it’s their quiet time, friends have told me their contracts are chopped and changed due to funding. Another primary primary teacher said I will be treated like a dogs body and that it’s also emotionally hard due to the children’s needs in primary school these days.
I have also been offered an admin role that I am also really interested in (I was previously a PA), I am very torn!

So, I’m looking for advice from those with experience please. Thanks so much.

Admin.

Thanks, can I ask why?

Definitely admin

Thanks, can I ask why?

If it’s what you want then try it out, some TA’s absolutely love it and you can see they were born for the role. However in some schools it’s incredibly difficult, you are pushed around to do anything and everything required (basically anything the teacher doesn’t want to do too) and the kids can be absolute horrors. I think it’s one of those roles that you have to be incredibly passionate to enjoy it. The pay feels ridiculous for what you do, but the hours are fantastic.

Also beware agency staff don’t get paid holidays. I’d rather work in a school. The hourly rate is good though. Schools are charged almost as much as a substitute ta as they are for a sub teacher by some agencies.

Everyone's experiences are different, you wont know until you try it yourself. Personally I would go admin, too many horror stories about schools these days. If you have a thick skin and the patience of a saint then go for it !

Thank you, I don’t have a thick skin, that’s one of my worries .

Eteach is a good site for TA jobs nationwide. You’ll see full and part time, short term contracts, maternity cover etc.

The working hours and holidays are good, but the job can be very challenging & sometimes demoralising (primary & secondary) mainly due to pupil behaviour & attitude.

There are lots of positive aspects, but schools are a very hard place to work these days.

I absolutely loved being a TA. The downsides were the impossibly low pay and so much depended on how good the teachers were. The advantages were that every day was different and I loved working with hundreds of amazing children and young people.

You'd get more secure work if you apply for a TA job directly.

However, with the funding cuts this is the area that schools are having to cut back on. It means it's often a temporary contract and you may not get the hours for full time. (Also what is considered full time for a TA isn't a full time job so it's important to check out the actual salary as it can be significantly lower than what is advertised due to the hours and that it's only for 39 weeks of the year.)

It can be a hugely rewarding job and if the team you're working with is good, then it's brilliant.

TAs are most often now being employed for the highest need children. This is often the children who would have probably been in a specialist setting but due to a variety of reasons are now in mainstream. These children are challenging, dysregulated and need their work very adapted. They can also be hugely rewarding to work with.

Some people feel like they're babysitting these children as there isn't much academic progress and they often can't be in the classroom. It can be emotionally draining to face this each day.

Equally, when you see a child begin to flourish and know that you were instrumental, it makes the job so worth it.

This varies hugely from school to school.

Go for the admin job. You would be a fool to do otherwise.

Being TA today is a vile job and few of them. I would look for another job.

Recently we had shortages finding TAs to recruit. The new government are not adequately funding our budgets so lots of TAs are being cut. You would be unlikely to find a permanent job.

I work as a ta in a lovely school with fantastic staff and kids yet despite this I now hate the job, as do all the TAs. Due to the need in EYFS we are just punchbags trying our best to stop the other children being hurt. Also if you are now under a reform council watch out as any sen funding is likely to be cut. Admin all the way!

As an agency TA you will have no consistency of income or where you are working. I am a TA in a secondary school and agency tell me they have to get up early every day waiting for the phone to ring to see if they have work that day. Many of them go long periods of time without work and often have a second job.

Also we have been told that in the current economic climate we may not all have jobs next year as the first place to be cut is always support staff so the number of TA agency jobs maybe quite low in the next financial year.

You asked for specifics so here is mine. I volunteered in a large primary, studied for extra qualifications (SEND) so was basically treated as a TA/LSA as much as possible.

The upsides, most of the children are just lovely, it is rewarding when they grasp something they struggled with, seeing them progress both academically, socially and they are pretty funny too. The teachers are trying their best to engage the children.

The downsides, you can be treated as a general dogsbody. As a volunteer I wasn't put in classrooms with violent children. I didn't have "Team Teach" training, ie de-escalating dysregulated children and so didn't have to manhandle a child from a classroom. I was never injured as a result. Teachers and TAs have been spat at, kicked, hit, fingers broken, lesser stuff sworn at, name called and the language is shocking. This is an outstanding primary in a lovely area but some children have never been told no by a parent and some have horrific home lives where it is considered safer to be in school than at home.

There will be "rainbow rooms" or places to put angry, stressed children who need time to calm down in a safe environment. This is in lots of schools. So a child screaming let me out you fuckers, I will fucking do you from the mouth of a 6 year old was normal. As a TA you will probably have a shorter lunch (long term TAs had an hour, new staff had 30 minutes) the other 30 minutes were 1 to 1 duties keeping an eye on children who have a 1 to 1 in the classroom and that TA needs their lunch break.

I did have full safeguarding training before being in the school, had to sign and read certain school policies especially first aid and confidentiality. Did I love it? Yes I absolutely did. Would I choose the admin job? Yes.

Worked as a primary teacher for 25 years. Several of which were on supply. I recently left for a work life balance. NO WAY ON THIS EARTH DID I WANT TO BE A TA!!!