Harris Federation Hiring for Graduate Teaching Assistant Job at London, England Full Time

Inspire and transform learning with us. Harris Academy Chobham is looking for a Teaching Assistant to support individuals and groups of students to enable access to learning, contributing to the development and maintenance of a purposeful, nurturing learning environment.

About Us

Chobham Academy is always on the lookout for inspirational and influential staff. Most of all, we are on the lookout for potential colleagues who like our students and want to help them succeed. In order to help our staff have the best possible experience and achieve a proper work- life balance, we have put into place a range of measures to benefit both our teaching and students services colleagues.

These include:

• An extra week of holiday for all Chobham staff. This takes the form of a two-week half term in October. We work fewer days than most other schools.
• Outstanding professional development both at Chobham and through the wider Harris Federation
• Excellent promotion opportunities
• A constant dialogue about workload and how to manage it most effectively. We have regular workload audits, and frequent campaigns to tackle unnecessary work and identify quick wins
• Rapid and effective support with any student behavioural issues arising
• A high-quality staff induction programme
• Marking protocols devised by departments themselves
• Manageable and flexible lesson planning expectations
• Clear communications and manageable deadlines. We only ask staff to do what is necessary and avoid complication and confusion. Chobham is an exceptionally well-run school
• Learning walks rather than formal lesson observations. These are not graded
• Nursery on site
• Flexible and part time working encouraged whenever possible
• Additional time for leadership responsibilities
• Focus on effective outcomes rather than time spent
• High levels of administrative support for all teachers
• Ongoing celebration of staff excellence
• Generous Harris rewards and benefits package, including an extra £2000 annually for all teachers working in our Academy.

We place high emphasis on staff wellbeing at Chobham. This helps colleagues to be happier and more effective in their work. Staff are regularly consulted about their wellbeing and the outcomes of these consultations have a direct and rapid impact upon the Academy’s approach to supporting staff wellbeing.

We understand that while it is incredibly rewarding, teaching is also a physically and emotionally wearing job. We want Chobham teachers to be as fit and fresh as possible and to know that the school as a community really cares about how they are. We have tried to put these principles into practice with a number of initiatives which we think give Chobham teachers one of the best wellbeing packages to be found anywhere. These include:

• A meeting free week every half term
• An extra week of holiday with a two-week half term in the Autumn
• A late start or early finish for every teacher on one day each week
• A staff mindfulness programme led by trained colleagues and supported by a free mindfulness app
• Subsidised gym membership
• Staff fitness and exercise classes
• Guest speakers on wellbeing
• Regular special events such as comedy nights
• The ‘Perkbox’ package of financial benefits
• Staff discounts at shops and restaurants in the local area
• Access to the Harris Federation’s staff counselling service

Our staff are regularly consulted on the wellbeing services the school provides and we always try to respond to staff suggestions. In this way, staff feel empowered and get more of the services they really want. We are very proud of our wellbeing programme at Chobham and hope you will agree that it shows our commitment to making the school an exemplary working environment.

Main Areas of Responsibility

• To supervise and provide particular support for identified students, in 1:1, group or whole class situations, ensuring their safety and access to learning.
• To assist in the development of appropriate resources, schemes of work and teaching strategies, working with the teacher to ensure the provision supports each identified student’s learning needs.
• To assist in evaluating identified students’ progress through agreed assessment activities.
• To provide detailed and regular feedback to teachers on students’ achievement, progress and needs.
• To lead small group sessions and interventions as appropriate.
• To attend to the students’ personal needs where required.
• To support with behaviour management, using appropriate strategies in line with academy policy.
• To contribute to creating a purposeful and supportive learning environment.
• Undertake structured and agreed learning activities/teaching programmes as appropriate, adjusting activities to ensure achievement of learning goals.

Qualifications & Experience

Qualifications, Knowledge & Training

• Educated to degree level or equivalent
• Some knowledge of strategies in working with young people with challenging behaviours
• Knowledge of some of the social issues facing students from disadvantaged backgrounds
• Awareness of Health and Safety issues in the workplace.

Experience

• Experience of working directly with young people in an education or training environment, supporting the learning of students.
• Experience of establishing and maintaining positive working relationships with a range of stakeholders, at all levels.
• Experience of managing and being responsible for own workload.

Personal Skills, Abilities & Qualities

• Good literacy and numeracy skills,
• Good interpersonal and communication skills, with an excellent standard of written and spoken English.
• Good administrative and organisational skills.
• Ability to interest, encourage, motivate and engage children
• Ability to work as part of a team; working effectively with people across a wide range of levels and responsibilities.
• Computer literate – must have good ICT skills including a working knowledge of MS packages e.g. Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, Excel etc, as well as using and updating records and databases.
• Ability to work using own initiative, exercising good judgement where unsupervised.
• Flexibility of approach to work.
• Ability to maintain confidentiality; having tact and diplomacy where necessary.

Next Steps

If you have any questions about this opportunity, please contact us via e-mail, or call to arrange a conversation.

Before applying, please download the Job Pack for full details on the job responsibilities and person specification. You will need this when completing your application.

Please note: we may hold interviews as and when applications are received and we reserve the right to offer to a candidate prior to the closing date. We only accept applications submitted online via our careers website and which are completed before the closing deadline. With this in mind, we encourage you to apply as soon as possible and advise you check the job information as per the listing on our careers site.

Professional Development & Benefits

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 to senior leadership.

We look for talented individuals who share our vision for creating exceptional places of learning, and are committed to ensuring that every child in London has access to the best possible education.

In addition to the opportunities for career progression, training and development, we also offer a competitive rewards and benefits package which includes our Harris Allowance, a Performance and Loyalty Bonus, Pension Scheme, a Wellbeing Cash Plan and many other benefits.

Safeguarding Notice

The Harris Federation and all our academies are committed to ensuring the highest levels of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, and we expect all our staff and volunteers to share in this commitment. All offers of employment are subject to an Enhanced DBS check, references, and where applicable, a prohibition from teaching check will be completed for all applicants. Before applying, please review our Policy Statement on the Recruitment of Ex-Offenders.

Equal Opportunities

The Harris Federation is an equal opportunities employer and welcomes applications from all suitably qualified candidates.

As a provider of employment and education, we value the diversity of our staff and students, and all our staff are equally valued and respected. We are committed to providing a fair, equitable and mutually supportive learning and working environment for our students and staff.

Job Reference: HF01770-CHOB