Ref: 000703
The Trustees are looking to recruit to the posts of SEN Level 1Teaching Assistant
New Bridge School, Hollinwood
Fixed term
NJC scale point 3: £24,027 per annum (full time / full year salary)
Actual salary: £18,453 per annum plus SEN Allowance
Commencing as soon as possible
We have an opportunity for an ambitious, passionate individual to take on the role of a teaching assistant in our school. Build your meaningful future with us and take your career to the next level. If you’re the kind of person dedicated to improving the lives of children, you’re just the person New Bridge is looking for.
Why New Bridge?
“Staff are proud to work at the school. They are highly supported in their professional development”
Ofsted Report February 2025
We are committed to making a difference where it matters most to create meaningful futures for all.
We invest in developing talent through our strong focus on coaching and training.
We nurture teams: fostering a sense of belonging secured by strong purpose and healthy relationships.
As we are a talent first organisation, we are always looking to find people who align themselves to our mission and values. If you feel that could be you then we would love to hear from you.
If you’re the kind of person that is committed to improving the lives of children, by having the ability to build good working relationships, utilising organisational skills, being flexible and innovative, and enjoy working with a range of different stakeholders, then you are the person to support our children and lead our staff. We pride ourselves on being the New Bridge ‘community’, a vocational destination, not just a job.
The school has an Outstanding rated provision which caters for 368 pupils with a wide range of SEND, from moderate learning difficulties to profound and multiple learning difficulties, including severe and complex learning difficulties. The school is popular with families both in Oldham and the surrounding boroughs and our numbers are increasing year on year. We are excited about being able to expand our teaching roles and create new vacancies to meet the needs of our new pupils. The school also caters for a wide range of pupils including those with physical disabilities, multisensory impairments, visual impairments, hearing impairments and autism spectrum conditions. All pupils have an EHC plan.
In order to cater to the needs of the range of pupils the school has developed a range of different provisions, including our Key Stage 3 main body, Autism Base, Interactive Base and Key Stage 4 Community Living Groups.
As a result of some additionality funding, the Trustees are looking to appoint a number of resilient and enthusiastic Level 1 Teaching Assistants to join our dynamic, growing and committed staff team in the following areas:
Interactive Base:
The Interactive Base (IB) provides an appropriate learning environment for learners with complex learning difficulties and disabilities (CLDD). The aim of the IB is to provide a stimulating, engaging and sensory curriculum that is both broad and balanced. The IB groups offer a base for their learners which provides routine, consistent specialist staffing and encourages independence and communication. The pupils within the IB are grouped in classes which may go across age groups and sometimes Key Stages to best meet their needs.
All pupils in IB have individual care plans which detail interventions required for their care and ability to engage fully with all aspects of school life. As a TA1 in IB you would be required to support with feeding and swallowing, speech and language programmes which can include assistive technologies, physiotherapy programmes, behaviour interventions, personal care and assisting with medical needs. You would be assigned to a class group and support these pupils in all lessons.
Main Body:
Our main body provision is for pupils who are working towards a destination of being independent or working with support in their community. With this in mind the curriculum is underpinned by the intent to maximise the ability for every pupil to live as independently as possible. To achieve this, we seek to offer an engaging, fun and relevant curriculum that is flexible to the needs of our pupils, and which reflects EHCP outcomes and supports their wellbeing. In the main body we implement this through a blended model where 70% of lessons are delivered by the form tutor, including English, Maths, Science, Living Skills and RSE. Other Enrichment subjects such as Art, PE, Music and Cooking are delivered by subject specialist teachers. Our main body groups are usually 13 pupils or less with a one teacher and up to two TA’s depending on the needs of the pupils in the group. As a TA1 in our main body you would be assigned to a form group and would support this group both when they are with the class teacher and also when they move around the school to their other subjects.
Key Stage 4 Pathway:
Our Community Living Pathways are for pupils at Key Stage 4 to develop their communication, emotional regulation and independence skills. The focus of the Curriculum is aimed at the development of functional communication skills which support their ability to make their wants and need known. This may involve using adapted systems including communication devices, picture exchange systems, signing and symbols. Pupils have the same Curriculum content as their peers in the main body of the school, so they study Maths, English, ICT etc. The class teachers in this provision focus largely on EHCP outcomes and deliver the majority of subjects to pupils. As a TA1 in the Communication group you would be required to support with feeding and swallowing, speech and language programmes which can include assistive technologies, physiotherapy programmes, behaviour interventions, personal care and assisting with medical needs. You would be assigned to a class group and support these pupils in all lessons.
Applicants should be able to demonstrate how they meet the following essential criteria:
* Previous experience of working with young people of primary/secondary school age who may present with challenging behaviour and complex needs, preferably within an educational setting.
* A nurturing and empathetic approach to behaviour management.
* The physical and emotional resilience to support students with complex needs, taking a non-judgemental approach.
* The ability to support teaching and learning within a special needs setting to a dedicated group of students.
* The ability to support the class teacher to monitor student progress, ensuring their improved engagement with the school and their learning.
* The ability to record student progress and provide regular feedback to stakeholders.
* The ability to model and encourage appropriate social behaviour in and out of school and to cater for the general welfare of students.
* The ability to work in partnership with classroom teachers to differentiate appropriate interventions for students in relation to the curriculum.
* The ability to work as part of a team using own initiative when needed.
* Willingness to participate in own professional development.
Although based initially at our Roman Road site, all staff are employed by the MAT and are expected to work at any site within the New Bridge Group,
We are fully committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, and vulnerable adults and we expect all staff and volunteers to share the same commitment.
This post will be subject to a number of pre-employment checks including an enhanced DBS check, satisfactory references and proof of right to work in the UK in accordance with the Asylum and Immigration Act 1996. It will be exempt from the provisions of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. DBS Code of Practice which can be viewedhere .
For successful candidates, an online search will be carried out as part of our due-diligence in line with Keeping Children Safe in Education 2023.
We strive to create a fair and inclusive workplace that is as diverse as the communities we serve. We positively welcome applications from all candidates regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy, and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation.
Salary: NJC scale point 3: £24,027 per annum (full time / full year salary)
Actual Salary: £18,453 per annum
Allowance: SEN allowance - £1,491 per annum
Status: Fixed Term for a maximum of 12 months
Contracted Hours: 32 hours 55 minutes per week / Term Time plus 5 days (195 days)
Based: New Bridge School, Roman Road, Hollinwood, Oldham, OL8 3PH
Closing Date: Wednesday 23rd April 2025 (9am)
Interviews: Week commencing 28th April 2025
Further Info: Debbie Birch-Hall, Deputy Head of School dhall@newbridgegroup.org
Completed applications to be sent to: recruitment@newbridgegroup.org