Training boost for school support staff

Citation

(2003), "Training boost for school support staff", Industrial and Commercial Training, Vol. 35 No. 7. https://doi.org/10.1108/ict.2003.03735gab.005

Training boost for school support staff

Training boost for school support staff

The British government has set out an eight-point prospectus to boost the training and qualifications available to support staff working in schools.

A major contribution will come from the Learning and Skills Council (LSC), which has spelled out how it is responding to the needs of school-support staff as part of its wider strategy on raising the level of skills for individuals across different sectors. The immediate next steps include:

1. 1.

   doubling the number of places on a pilot programme to deliver qualifications for 1,000 administrators, mid-day supervisors and caretakers;

2. 2.

   developing a school support staff sector plan through a national LSC group, chaired by a local LSC executive director and backed by a national network of LSC staff; and

3. 3.

   inviting local-authority employer and support staff union representatives to join a high-level group that will oversee and advise on the development and implementation of the sector plan.

The programme reflects the government’s commitment to raise skill levels across the whole workforce, public and private sectors. The LSC has been working with a number of sectors to support the development of their staff, including similarly customized approaches for early-years and child-care staff.

The school-standards minister, David Miliband, said: “I am really pleased that the Learning and Skills Council is responding so positively to the skills challenge in this key area of public-sector reform. Training and development of school support staff lies at the heart of implementing workforce reform. Pupils, teachers and support staff themselves all stand to benefit.”

Graham Lane, of the National Employers’ Organization for School Teachers, said: “LSCs are starting to do some really interesting and worthwhile work on the skill agenda with their local schools and local education authorities. This is an exciting development, it is good news for support staff in schools and we are delighted to be part of it.”

The LSC initiative underpins a wider prospectus for developing training and qualifications for school support staff. Other key elements are the standards and training for higher-level teaching assistants under development by the Teacher Training Agency, training for school bursars and business managers delivered by the National College for School Leadership, and the development of induction training for all school support staff.