Kathryn Morgan, Leadership and Workforce Specialist at the Association of School and College Leaders, responds to a report from the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER), which states that three in four school leaders are struggling to recruit teaching assistants.
“Teaching assistants and other support staff are worth their weight in gold. Workload pressures in schools mean teaching assistants are taking on increasing responsibilities, often in more complex and high-needs settings. They provide vital support in the classroom, not just for SEND pupils but to all learners, but unfortunately pay has not kept pace with these growing demands.
“Squeezed school budgets, combined with the opportunities available in other sectors, mean it is becoming more challenging to recruit and retain teaching assistants and other support staff. We agree with the recommendation that the government needs to do more to help schools recruit support staff. Schools cannot be left in a position where they do not have the funding required to pay all members of staff appropriately for their vital work.
“We welcome the research NFER is doing into workforce pressures across the whole of the education system and look forward to continuing to support them with this work.”