There are no nationally agreed pay rates, and pay for many teaching assistants, cleaners, school meals workers and caretakers are set by their employing local authority.
In England, at least, this will soon change. A new national negotiating body for school support staff is about to be established, after years of pressure from Unison. Together with the DCSF, Unison is working to develop national standard rates of pay and conditions, clear job descriptions and a proper career path.
For the first time last year, schools support staff outnumbered teachers in the UK's schools. Many are now taking on more responsibility as their roles develop in line with the Government's Workforce Remodelling Agreement. The agreement is aimed at moving the burden of non-teaching tasks away from teachers, giving them more contact time with pupils.
Evidence shows that teaching assistants are doing a good job. A recent Ofsted report showed that children are benefiting from being educated by staff from a wide variety of backgrounds - and that the effect has been greatest among pupils who are most likely to truant, under-achieve, or be excluded from school.
We want good work to be rewarded properly. We aim to ensure consistent pay rates and conditions, improving pay and training overall.
Wales, unfortunately, is not included in the agreement. We will continue to campaign for this to be extended to cover school support staff there, and we will shortly be meeting education minister, Jane Hutton, to press for this parity as a matter of urgency.