Bucks teaching assistants face dilemma over future due to 'unfair' pay

Teaching assistants in Bucks are unsure on whether they can carry on unless their pay improves amid the cost of living crisis.

A petition has been launched, which can be found here, urging Parliament to act on the low wages school support staff receive.

The petition calls on the Government to improve wages as “this is not a job many TAs can afford to keep, and a huge number of highly skilled TAs are being forced to find other jobs”, a spokesman states.

One mother who signed the petition contacted Bucks Council Leader Martin Tett regarding concerns on teaching assistant pay.

She was told that the onus was on the schools to set the wages for teaching assistants and that institutions can only pay what they can afford.

Bucks Council has informed The Bucks Herald that it plans to work with schools to resolve issues around teaching assistant’s pay.

The mother who asked The Bucks Herald to share the petition said: “Although I understand there is a crisis, these people are dealing day-in-day-out with the education of our children, and not being recognised for their hard work, which is just appalling.

"I think the government must do more.

"It saddens me profoundly that people that work with our children and have such indispensable roles in supporting their well-being, as a teacher would not be able to cope without them, could not have any kind of recognition, most of them having to work part of their lunchtime or after-school clubs to make ends meet. This is not how they should be treated.”

In response to the petition a Government spokesman said: “Government recognises the importance of teaching assistants. Schools are free to set their pay and most mirror local government pay scales.”

The teaching assistants that spoke with The Bucks Herald stated there was an expectation for them to complete marking and individual plans for students outside of their working hours, or to assist the school by doing tasks outside of their remit like cleaning classrooms and bathrooms.

A teaching assistant working in a Bucks village said: “It’s getting to the point where it is so hard, and you are expected to do so many things outside of the job description. That yes. I am considering whether this is really what I want to do.”

Another teaching assistant working at an academy in the county told The Bucks Herald that both she and many of her fellow professionals were working as tutors with individual students to support their families.

She said: “I don’t think it’s fair as many teachers’ salaries have been raised before Christmas and we live in the same world.

“I really like working with children. But if I need to work outside of school hours a lot it will affect my family.”

Another area of concern for this teaching assistant is a lack of clarity over who is responsible for setting pay.

The school has placed the onus on the Government, while her local MP stated it was up to the academy to set teaching assistant wages.

The National Education Union advises teachers and teaching assistants that independent schools can operate outside the School Teachers' Pay and Conditions Document (STPCD).

This means they can set their own pay scale.

Councillor Anita Cranmer told The Bucks Herald: “We at Buckinghamshire Council acknowledge the very important role that Teaching Assistants play in the development of children and the essential work that schools do to improve the outcomes for every student. We will continue to work in partnership with our schools to seek solutions to the issue over the coming weeks.”