Teaching assistant, non-teaching assistant, classroom assistant, nursery nurse, early years practitioner... The number of job titles given to support staff in primary schools is only outdone by the number of different contractual arrangments and job descriptions that they have. A survey by the Professional Association of Nursery Nurses found huge variations in salaries, roles and responsibilities (see News, page 4). One thing that support staff do have in common, however, is that they feel totally undervalued for the important work they do. As the rise in the number of classroom assistants et al continues, it is surely time to address the inconsistencies and make sure that adequate training and a career ladder are put in place.
Teaching assistant, non-teaching assistant, classroom assistant, nursery nurse, early years practitioner... The number of job titles given to support staff in primary schools is only outdone by the number of different contractual arrangments and job descriptions that they have. A survey by the Professional Association of Nursery Nurses found huge variations in salaries, roles and responsibilities (see News, page 4).
One thing that support staff do have in common, however, is that they feel totally undervalued for the important work they do. As the rise in the number of classroom assistants et al continues, it is surely time to address the inconsistencies and make sure that adequate training and a career ladder are put in place.
I hope that all our readers who want to win the brilliant makeover for their setting have collected their six tokens. Now turn to page 14, fill in the form and send it off straight away.
And don't forget to keep buying Nursery World to make sure you get all the great free supplements coming up in the next few weeks - Professional Nanny (26 April), Nursery Equipment (3 May) and Nursery Topics (17 May) should give you plenty to read and digest.
