HLTA - Cover - Discovery Academy in Sheffield

Join the Nexus team at Discovery Academy, Sheffield, S2 3QF.

Contract Type: Permanent

Hours: 36hrs p/w, Term Time Only (£27,887 to £29,950 actual salary, this includes a pay increase of 3.3 as from April 2026)

Closing date: Wednesday 2nd Sept 2026 10am

Shortlisting date: Wednesday 2nd Sept 2026

Interview date: Tuesday 8th September 2026

About our School:

Are you ready for your next challenge? Are you passionate about making a real difference to pupils with SEND? Are you nurturing, inclusive, empowering, caring, passionate, enriching, encouraging, child-centered and family focused? Are you ready to inspire the next generation of young minds? Are you a relentless children’s champion? Take a leap and become part of the Discovery Team of Dreamers, Believers and Achievers.

Discovery Academy is a school for children and young people with SEND located on the Norfolk Park Estate in Sheffield. The Academy is run by the award-winning Nexus Multi Academy Trust, and we have been open for just over 4 years. We believe that inspiring young people with their learning is about giving them a sense of belief that they will achieve their potential. This is an opportunity to build the school ethos from the ground upwards.

We are seeking to appoint a highly motivated, enthusiastic, hardworking and flexible person to join a team of dedicated staff who are committed to providing an excellent learning environment. Whether you are an experienced HLTA who has worked within a mainstream or specialist education setting, or someone who has exceptional vocational skills and a real drive to make a difference in children’s lives, you must be able to provide our children with aspirations for their futures along with promoting a positive culture in everything you do.

Knowledge of SEN will be advantageous and you must be able to respond to the emotional, social and mental health needs of our children and young people. You will be required to ensure the safety of our children and young people and facilitate their access to learning by responding to individual needs.

Experience in working with the relative aged pupils for the position in which you are to be considered for would be necessary and also if you have previous experience of delivering SALT would be advantageous. Via your excellent interpersonal skills, you will have the opportunity to make judgements on the attainment and progress of our students and be able to help them celebrate success. You will be working as part of a team supporting whole class lessons, group work and working one to one with pupils.

What you can expect from us:

• Access to free wellbeing support resources including counselling, medical and legal advice and an option to top up to private healthcare via corporate membership of a healthcare plan.
• Access to discount schemes for savings with high street retailers, restaurants, activities and lifestyle services.
• Auto enrolment into a leading pension scheme with Teachers Pension Scheme or Local Government Pension Scheme.
• Access to extensive and tailored career pathways, CPD programmes, training and coaching giving you the opportunity to grow and develop your career.
• An Induction package to help you settle in and approach your role with confidence and enthusiasm.
• The ability to contribute to and share quality practice with other professional TAs, Teachers and the wider team.
• Internal opportunities across the Trust academies and to work with specialised leaders in education on nationally recognised projects.
• Flexible working policies.
• Cycle to Work Scheme.
• Annual leave increases based on length of service plus bank holidays for support staff.

All candidates are advised to refer to the job profile before making an application.

Further information:

For an informal and confidential conversation about the role, please contact Karen Blakemore. Nexus Multi Academy Trust is committed to safeguarding and protecting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Safer recruitment practice and pre-employment checks will be undertaken before any appointment is confirmed. This post involves working with children and young people. If successful you will be required to apply for a disclosure of criminal records check at an enhanced level and a barred list check.

We are an equal opportunities employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce.

Privacy Notice (Job Applicants): We are committed to protecting your personal data and handling it responsibly. The information you provide on this application form will be used solely for recruitment and selection purposes, to assess your suitability for the role, and to communicate with you about your application. Your data will be processed in accordance with applicable data protection laws, including the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.