Graduate Teaching Assistant

What skills and experience we're looking for

Harris City Academy Crystal Palace is seeking to appoint a Graduate Teaching Assistant to work collaboratively with teaching staff in class to improve the outcomes of students with a variety of SEN needs, including those with Educational Health and Care Plans.

This is an excellent opportunity if you have a passion for working with SEN students to gain experience of working within a secondary school, and could be used as a first step into a career into teaching and/or the field of SEN. You will be supported by experienced colleagues and full training will be provided.

We would like to hear from you if you have:

• Qualifications to degree standard or equivalent
• An excellent standard of written and spoken English
• Previous experience of supporting learning of students
• Basic knowledge of SEND and learning barriers
• Some knowledge of working with young people with challenging behaviour
• Knowledge of some of the social issues facing students from disadvantaged backgrounds
• Good computer skills, including a working knowledge of MS packages
• Experience of working with young people in an educational or training environment
• Experience of establishing and maintaining working relationships with a range of people

For a full job description and person specification, please download the Job Pack.

What the school offers its staff

Harris City Academy Crystal Palace is a mixed Academy for 1,300 students aged 11-18, with a large sixth form of nearly 400 students. The Academy has three consecutive Outstanding judgments by Ofsted, with the most recent inspection in 2014 finding the Academy to be Outstanding in every aspect. We are a consistently high performing school. Our motto, ‘All Can Achieve' encapsulates our vision that all members of the Academy community are supported and encouraged to achieve their absolute potential. We believe that a well-supported and valued staff body is the key to our success.

We are the ‘Teaching School Hub' for Croydon and Sutton and we are able to offer all teachers an extensive programme of first class professional development. Harris City Academy Crystal Palace is part of the Harris Federation and this enables us to offer you a comprehensive induction programme and training and development opportunities to support your career development including Masters and other qualifications.

Our people are at the heart of our success. We have developed a strong culture of collaboration and best practice, with professional development and career planning at its centre. We invest in our staff with support, coaching, mentoring, and a wide range of top-quality training programmes delivered at every level.

In addition to the opportunities for career development and progression, we also offer a competitive rewards and benefits package which includesour Harris Allowance for teachers on MPS/UPS,a Performance and Loyalty Bonus, Pension Scheme with generous employer contributions, a Wellbeing Cash Plan and many other benefits. Learn more aboutour benefitson our website.

Further details about the role

Your responsibilities will include:

• Collaborating with class teachers and the SEN Department to support student engagement and progress
• Applying Quality First Teaching strategies and SEN Profiles within the Assess, Plan, Do, Review framework
• Adapting learning approaches to meet individual needs while encouraging student ownership
• Demonstrating subject knowledge to effectively support teaching and learning
• Using consistent behaviour management strategies aligned with student profiles and academy policies
• Participating in CPD opportunities within the SEN Department and wider academy
• Supporting other students in the classroom as needed
• Liaising with staff to communicate student challenges and progress
• Promoting the school's ethos including behaviour, dress code, punctuality and attendance
• Following the DfE Professional Standards for Teaching Assistants (2016)
• Assisting with trips and educational visits
• Taking on other reasonable duties as requested by the Principal

Commitment to safeguarding

The Harris Federation and all our academies are committed to ensuring the highest levels of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people, and we expect all our staff and volunteers to share this commitment. All offers of employment are subject to an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check, references, an online search, and where applicable, a prohibition from teaching check will be completed.