SEND Teaching Assistant in Exeter

We are seeking to recruit a SEND Teaching Assistant to work within our modern, purpose-built Resource Base at Marpool Primary School in Exmouth. You will work as part of the Special Education Needs and Disability team to also support those children with specific needs within our other Exeter schools. You will need to be able to demonstrate an excellent level of understanding of children with specific needs (both mental and physical) and how they can be best supported to ensure they thrive in mainstream education. You will be working within a busy and dynamic teaching environment and will need to have a passion and commitment to wanting our young children to develop a life‑long love of learning by being a positive and supportive role model.

Your Role

You will be based initially at Marpool Primary School, providing dedicated 1:1 support for children with complex and specific needs, and where needed, you will also provide SEND support in our other Exeter schools. Your work will be varied and impactful, focusing on both physical care and educational support.

Key responsibilities include:

• Supporting individual children – delivering personalised care and learning support to help children access the curriculum and make excellent progress.
• Providing physical and intimate care – including physiotherapy routines, personal hygiene, toileting, feeding and drinking.
• Administering medicines – including injections where required, following training and care plans.
• Safely moving children – supporting children who use wheelchairs, with full training provided in safe handling.
• Delivering intervention programmes – including speech and language activities, phonics, and physiotherapy exercises.
• Supporting teaching staff – preparing learning environments, maintaining pupil records, liaising with parents, and completing administrative tasks.
• Using digital technologies – working with each child’s digital device to support learning and intervention programmes.
• Adapting the curriculum – working with teachers and the SENDCo to tailor learning experiences, including reading, PE, games, trips, residentials, mentoring and tutoring.
• Supporting wider school life – leading playtime activities and assisting with the family dining service where older children serve younger pupils.

Training for all specialist aspects of the role will be provided.

What You’ll Bring

We are looking for someone who brings warmth, professionalism, and a commitment to helping children thrive. You will need:

• Experience working with children
• Relevant qualifications
• A caring and patient approach
• Willingness to undertake training
• Strong communication skills
• Digital confidence
• Teamwork and flexibility

Hours and Salary

8am‑5pm x 5 days per week, 40 weeks per year (Term time + 10 days). The full‑time equivalent salary for this role is in the region of £25,081. However, the actual salary based on the hours and weeks worked will commence in the region of £25,194 per annum.

Perks

• Heavily discounted childcare
• Health and cycle‑to‑work schemes
• Generous pension scheme
• Subsided meals from our in‑house chefs
• Free tea and coffee
• Commitment to ongoing professional development
• State‑of‑the‑art IT equipment

This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (2013 and 2020). This means that certain convictions and cautions are considered ‘protected’ and do not need to be disclosed to employers, and if they are disclosed, employers cannot take them into account. Guidance about whether a conviction or caution should be disclosed can be found on the Ministry of Justice website. An enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check is required for all our posts. We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.