Education Support Champion (TA)
Kingsdown School, Swindon, SN2 7SH17 days remaining to apply
Job start date
1 September 2025
Closing date
16 June 2025 at 8am
Date listed
28 May 2025
Job details
Job role
- Teaching assistant
Visa sponsorship
- Visas cannot be sponsored
Subjects
- Teaching Assistant, Learning Support Assistant
Working pattern
- Part time
Contract type
- Permanent
Full-time equivalent salary
- £16,986.00 - £17,807.00 Annually (Actual) £500 Recruitment Incentive
Education Support Champion (TA) job summary
Dear Applicant
Thank you for showing an interest in the post of Teaching Assistant (Education Support Champion)
Kingsdown School has much to offer and we are at an exceptionally exciting stage in our journey. Across every team in the school - Teaching, Business Support, Front Office, Inclusion, Pastoral, Governors, Middle and Senior Leaders, we are all extremely proud of what we have achieved in the last 4 years for our students, and they are exceptionally proud of their school too.
This is an exciting opportunity to play a fundamental role in removing a key barrier to learning and raise aspirations amongst our students. Working alongside a highly motivated team within the Inclusion Hub, you will have responsibility for planning and delivering targeted interventions to identified students who need additional support.
You will also be able to demonstrate the ability to encourage students to become independent learners, to provide support for their welfare, and to support the inclusion of pupils in all aspects of school life. The successful candidate will be able to communicate effectively and appropriately with staff, students and parents.
As you can imagine, Kingsdown is a dynamic school. It is transforming the life chances of our students, a community and our town. Our teams have been exceptional and continue to champion each and every student. Our students have been brilliant too - they have come on this journey with us - as have their parents. They have all modelled our Kingsdown BEATs. Kingsdown in Swindon is now regarded as the “school of choice”.
Where next:
Our journey is not complete. We are now looking for a new member of the Inclusion team to come on board and join our family.
Swindon & Kingsdown:
Kingsdown is an 11 to 16, mixed and non-selective school of 940 students. We have close on 30% who are DA and 27% who are SEND. We have an SRP for Autism with a provision for 15 students.
We are proud to serve our community. Our parents work with and in partnership with us. On the whole, our students come from Stratton, Penhill & Pinehurst. Our students deserve the best possible education and start in life and our mission statement is that we “champion each and every student”. I am sure this will resonate with you. If this truly motivates you - please read on.
What are we looking for in our new Education Support Champion:
Good organisational skills, flexible working practices, patience, persistence and the ability to build working relationships with students, staff and parents is essential.
The working pattern is 30 hours per week (8.15am – 3.10pm Monday and 8.25am – 3.10pm Tuesday to Friday, with the exception of every second Friday finishing at 1.20pm). Term time only, plus Teacher Development days.
We are looking for someone who will model our 3 strategic priorities - our 3 promises to students and parents and will do so each and every day:
- We will know our students well - esp our SEND
- We will teach them well - esp through a first class curriculum that will be expertly implemented through our Essential 8 and regularly assessed. Those students who are falling behind will be identified and intervened with - and early
- We will have high expectations in everything we do.
You will learn more about our Wheel of Excellence from our website and when you visit.
Do please take a look at our website kingsdownschool.co.uk. If you would like to arrange a visit to our Inclusion Team, please contact Laura in our HR Department lburgoyne@kingsdownschool.co.uk.
The closing date for your online application via My New Term is Wednesday 28th September at 8.00am. The interview date is to be confirmed.
What will and can we offer you:
Join our Kingsdown Family and you will join a team who genuinely care and champion each and every student and each and every member of the Kingsdown team.
At Kingsdown, we know that staff and students thrive in a ‘healthy work culture’ and the wellbeing of staff and student outcomes is inextricably linked. We are committed to providing the best working and learning environment for all. The RLT have a staff charter and strong values, we uphold these values and commitments, and further build on these with our Wellbeing Strategy.
Our goal is simple: To develop and maintain a healthy workplace where all staff can thrive, feel valued and enjoy a good balance of work, family and health.
At Kingsdown Wellbeing isn’t just a day’s event or a bowl of fruit, it is a holistic and live strategy that is real and valued. I invite you to explore some of the ways we value our most precious resource - our staff. Please see our Wellbeing Candidate Information in our TES/Eteach careers site.
Our school is part of the River Learning Trust; our collective vision is to be a Trust where pupils and staff thrive in schools which demonstrate:
all-round education, academic success, lifelong learning and strength of character
sustainable continuous improvement; no school standing still
all schools being good and outstanding, or improving rapidly
collaboration that is raising standards, and reducing workload
where pupils, staff, parents and communities value all we do to support the best possible outcomes and experiences for our children and young people
This role includes regulated activity relevant to children.
Where next? If you:
believe that all students can achieve regardless of their background and postcode
enjoy the challenge and reward of taking a school from Good to World Class,
feel that you have the skills and qualities to accelerate student progress, aspirations and self-belief, and
are truly committed to making a difference especially in Swindon and SN2
…. then this role could be ideal for you and I would very much like to hear from you and talk more.
In the meantime, I thank you for taking the time to read about Kingsdown School and look forward to hearing from you.
With best wishes
Emma Leigh-Bennett
Headteacher
The River Learning Trust and Kingsdown School are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all children and preventing extremism. All staff must ensure that the highest priority is given to following the guidance and regulations to safeguard children and young people. The River Learning Trust are required to conduct online searches about you as part of their shortlisting process in accordance with Keeping Children Safe in Education guidance in order to identify any incidents or concerns which are publicly available online. By applying for this role, you acknowledge that such searches will be conducted as part of the shortlisting process. The successful candidate will be subject to an enhanced DBS check. Employment will also be conditional on the receipt of at least two acceptable references (one from current/latest employer) and evidence of the formal qualifications required for the role. The River Learning Trust is an equal opportunities employer and we welcome applications from a range of backgrounds to represent diversity in line with our schools’ community. It is an offence to apply for certain roles within schools if you are barred from engaging in regulated activity relevant to children. You should contact the school if you are unsure if this role includes regulated activity relevant to children.
For all RLT Safer Recruitment Documentation candidates should click on the following link RLT Safer Recruitment Documents for Candidates. To view the Kingsdown School Child Protection Policy please click on the following link Child Protection Policy.
This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and the amendments to the Exceptions Order 1975, 2013 and 2020. Which means that when applying for certain jobs and activities certain spent convictions and cautions are ‘protected’, so they do not need to be disclosed to employers, and if they are disclosed, employers cannot take them into account. For further guidance for applicants click on the this link List of offences that are not filtered
Our staff are expected to maintain high standards of ethics and behaviour, within and outside school, by not undermining fundamental British values including democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect, and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs.
What benefits does the Trust offer to its employees?
- Annual pay increase for support staff (in line with grade boundaries) and for Teachers (subject to government framework and successful performance review)
- A Defined Benefit Pension Scheme with favourable terms for all employees (Teachers Pension for Teachers; LGPS for Support Staff)
- Moving from the public sector? Those without a break in service can be reassured that RLT will recognise their continuous service.
- Employee centred and family friendly policies and practises that support you in and beyond your workplace.
- Offering flexible working wherever we can, in order to support the work life balance of our employees.
- Enhanced sick pay, maternity leave, paternity leave and parental leave.
- Competitive holiday entitlement for support staff (minimum 24 days rising to 32 day plus bank holidays per annum - dependent on grade of role and length of service)
- Cycle to work scheme
- Funded eye tests and glasses for DSE users (subject to T/Cs)
Commitment to safeguarding
Our organisation is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. We expect all staff, volunteers and trustees to share this commitment.
Our recruitment process follows the keeping children safe in education guidance.
Offers of employment may be subject to the following checks (where relevant):
childcare disqualification
Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS)
medical
online and social media
prohibition from teaching
right to work
satisfactory references
suitability to work with children
You must tell us about any unspent conviction, cautions, reprimands or warnings under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975.
Applying for the job
This school accepts applications through their own website, where you may also find more information about this job.
CVs are not accepted.
About Kingsdown School
- School type
- Academy, ages 11 to 16
- Education phase
- Secondary
- School size
- 990 pupils enrolled
- Age range
- 11 to 16
- Ofsted report
- View Ofsted report
- School website
- Kingsdown School website
Kingsdown is a mixed 11–16 Secondary School located in Stratton St Margaret, Swindon. It offers a vibrant learning environment, one in which its students take great pride in both their learning, their behaviour and their individual aspirations. Our teachers combine a high level of academic expertise with excellent teaching skills and a real and deep concern for the wellbeing of each and every student. Taken together, these allow us to recruit and retain the very best teachers.
Thank you for taking an interest in working with us at Kingsdown School. You are joining us at a very exciting time in our school’s history. At the end of January 2020, we had a two day Ofsted Inspection and were judged to be Good in all five categories under the new framework. This marked the end to over a decade of being judged Requires Improvement.
Kingsdown is a school that has been on a transformational journey. We had a two year P8 trend of -0.50 and this year we secured a P8 score of +0.04. We have also recently been shortlisted for the TES Secondary School of the Year award. Along with the Ofsted judgement, this transformation is truly wonderful for our students, our school and community. Now we are looking for talented and experienced colleagues to join our team as we journey to Outstanding.
Our vision for our school is “a school of excellence bursting with pride and ambition” and our mission statement is that we “champion each and every student”.
School location
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