Employer Description
South Lanarkshire Council is the unitary authority serving the South Lanarkshire council area in Scotland. The council has its headquarters in Hamilton, has 16,000 employees, and a budget of almost £1bn. The large and varied geographical territory takes in rural and upland areas, market towns such as Lanark, Strathaven and Carluke, the urban burghs of Rutherglen, Cambuslang, and East Kilbride which was Scotland's first new town.
Our vision is for South Lanarkshire as set out in our Economic Strategy is to have one of the strongest and most dynamic economies in Scotland, where businesses, communities, and residents achieve their full potential and prosper.
We will achieve this through three key interrelated themes:
* People - skills, learning and employability
* Place - physical infrastructure and place
* Business - business development and growth
Job Description
Various locations available across South Lanarkshire's learning communities, these will include:
* Hamilton
* Carluke
* Cathkin
* Larkhall
* Duncanrig
* Lanark
* Calderglen
* Kear
Various hours and posts available.
Salary: £13.12 - £13.78 per hour.
View the School Support Assistant job profile.
Please ensure to answer all 4 questions below, providing no more than 2000 words per question.
You must attach/upload a separate document with your answers to each question.
* Please describe any situations where you have supported children displaying distressed behaviour, explaining the approaches that you used. (max 2000 words)
* Communication skills are a critical part of working in a team. Please describe a time when you have had to contribute constructively to a meeting or discussion. (max 2000 words)
* Please describe a time when you have had to adapt your approach to address changing priorities. (max 2000 words
* Please describe a situation where you have used planning and organising skills to achieve an efficient outcome. (max 2000 words)
Within South Lanarkshire Council it is our mission to deliver positive, meaningful outcomes for our young people. In Education Resources we aim to provide an exceptional learning and working environment within our establishments for pupils and staff. We work in partnership with services and families to focus on the national priorities to improve literacy, numeracy, and health & wellbeing outcomes.
To help meet these needs where a child requires support over and above that provided by their Class Teacher or Early Years Key Worker, we have a flexible role that encompasses three main elements of additional support needed for our schools and pupils. In the role of School Support Assistant (SSA) you will probably work mainly within one of these disciplines but it’s also possible you could work across all three at different times. The flexible role is designed to allow SSAs to work together as a team to support diverse need of the pupils and the school. The nature of schools and pupils means these needs change and can be re-prioritised on a regular basis. This keeps the job of a School Support Assistant dynamic, absorbing and challenging.
In that context, hard work and flexibility is key for successful candidates. The rewards of the role in return are very attractive. As well as the progress and achievements of the young people you support, the posts are mainly term time, so having the same holidays as schools means these jobs are ideal for people seeking a positive work/life balance. You’d also be joining a Local Authority that values its staff. We are a family friendly employer who understands the needs of our employees through a range of supportive policies. You’d have excellent job security and employee benefits. You’d have access to a very well-developed training and development programme for School Support Assistants.
Please Apply online - All correspondence will be via your email address.
Legislative Information
This post is excepted in terms of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 2003.
This post is considered Regulated Work with Children and/or adults, under the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Act, 2007. Therefore, it is an offence to apply if you are barred from working with children and/or adults.
Preferred candidates will be required to join the PVG Scheme, or undergo a PVG Scheme Update check, prior to a formal offer of employment being made.
Please refer to for further information about the disclosure process and best practice.
Foreign Police Check
Candidates should be able to detail any gaps in employment and provide a foreign police check where applicable for any periods living or working abroad.
Equal Opportunities and Armed Forces Community Covenant
South Lanarkshire Council is an Equal Opportunities employer and encourages applications from all members of the community. As a user of the disability confident scheme, we guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum competency/behaviour requirements for the position.
South Lanarkshire Council is committed to providing support to members of the armed forces, veterans and their families which is set out in the Armed Forces Community Covenant. Veterans are guaranteed an interview who meet the minimum requirements for the position.
As an employee of South Lanarkshire Council you would also receive a wide range of benefits including:
* Enrolment in award winning local government pension scheme
* Occupational sick pay
* Family friendly policies - flexible working and leave, maternity/paternity leave, enhanced leave.
* Employee Discounts – including discounts at the cinema.
Range of benefits to support you (Cycle to Work Scheme, Physiotherapy, Employee Assistance Program which offers practical and emotional support)
Please note we do not accept CVs, any submitted will be disregarded. If you require to submit additional information to support your application, please upload this under supporting documents.
Proud member of the Disability Confident employer scheme
Disability Confident
About Disability Confident
A Disability Confident employer will generally offer an interview to any applicant that declares they have a disability and meets the minimum criteria for the job as defined by the employer. It is important to note that in certain recruitment situations such as high-volume, seasonal and high-peak times, the employer may wish to limit the overall numbers of interviews offered to both disabled people and non-disabled people. For more details please go to Disability Confident .