UNISON has today (Friday) welcomed a report from the Education Endowment Foundation that aims to help school leaders get the most from teaching assistants (TAs)*.
The report – Making best use of teaching assistants – highlights the importance of high quality training and says that teaching assistants should be seen as an effective way of complementing teachers, rather than replacing them.
UNISON, which represents more than 150,000 teaching assistants in the UK, has long argued that the vital role they play in boosting quality and standards should be backed up by greater investment in the workforce.
UNISON head of education Jon Richards said: “We are pleased the report highlights the importance of training for teaching assistants. They are often pushed into roles they are not trained to do, which is unfair on them and on pupils.
“Spending cuts have seen £10m axed from the training budget for school support staff, which was a blow to morale and undermined career development.
“We would welcome further research into best practice around the wide range of roles TAs can excel in, such as providing pastoral care, supporting teachers and engaging with the local community.
“But the government must properly invest in the training and development of teaching assistants.”
In a recent UNISON survey of more than 8,000 teaching assistants, 75 per cent expressed concern over the lack of training and professional development, saying that the vast bulk of training budgets were reserved for teachers.
Notes to editors: *Teaching assistants are also known as learning support assistants, classroom assistants and pupil support assistants, along with a variety of other job titles.