Teaching Assistant

At Harris Academy Falconwood, our vision, 'Knowledge is Power, We make it stick,' is more than just a motto: it's the bedrock of everything we do. We passionately believe in providing a first-class education that goes far beyond the everyday. We understand that education is the most potent engine for social mobility, empowering young people to transcend their circumstances and seize opportunities that might otherwise remain out of reach. Our aim is to create a platform for true social mobility, tapping into every child's unique potential and setting them on a path towards ambitious destinations and informed choices.

We achieve this through a broad, diverse, and ambitious curriculum, designed to do so much more than just impart facts. As highlighted in our recent Ofsted report from March 2025, students at Harris Academy Falconwood receive "a very strong education" and "achieve highly," a direct result of our "carefully designed, ambitious curriculum" that "promotes pupils' academic and personal achievements extremely well." This curriculum supports students to not only learn the powerful knowledge they need to succeed academically, but also to develop great character, cultivate healthy habits for life, and profoundly broaden their horizons. We believe in nurturing the whole child, ensuring they are well-rounded individuals ready for the complexities of the modern world.

Our commitment to inclusion is paramount to our mission for all students to succeed. This is why we are proud that Ofsted recognised how "the needs of disadvantaged pupils and pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are identified and met well," ensuring "all pupils the same high-quality experiences."

We want our students to emerge from Harris Academy Falconwood as confident, articulate individuals, fully equipped to navigate the demands of a fast-paced, ever-changing world. We strive to instil resilience and adaptability, so they can face challenges head-on. Beyond academic excellence, we want our students to not only recognise injustice but to actively challenge it. We foster an environment where kindness and support thrive, encouraging every student to contribute positively to the communities they belong to, and to truly understand and enjoy a sense of belonging right here at the academy. We know that a supported student is a successful student, which is why we pride ourselves on putting student personal development and wellbeing at the heart of everything we do to ensure every student goes on to live a happy and successful life.

Harris Academy Falconwood stands as a beacon of educational excellence. The academy's recent, remarkable progress is a testament to the effective leadership of all staff and the hard work of our outstanding students.

Harris Academy Falconwood 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.

The actual salary for this role will be £ hours per week, 38 weeks per year).

Your responsibilities will include:

• Supervising and supporting identified students, in 1:1, group or whole class situations, ensuring their safety and access to learning
• Assisting 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
• Assisting in evaluating identified students' progress through agreed assessment activities
• Providing detailed and regular feedback to teachers on students' achievement, progress and needs
• Leading small group sessions and interventions as appropriate
• Attending to the students' personal needs where required
• Supporting with behaviour management, using appropriate strategies in line with academy policy
• Contributing to creating a purposeful and supportive learning environment
• Undertaking structured and agreed learning activities/teaching programmes as appropriate, adjusting activities to ensure achievement of learning goals

We would like to hear from you if you have:

• Qualifications 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 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.

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

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 abouton our website.

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 onl