The information on this web-page has been created by the Trailblazer group. It is aimed at supporting apprentices, educational organisations and providers in making the most of this new and most welcome standard.

We are delighted to introduce you to the Level 5 Specialist Teaching Assistant Apprenticeship. We recognise that for many this is a long-awaited development. This standard seeks to support schools and educational settings to gain capacity to meet learner and staffing needs. We value, celebrate and recognise the significance of our Level 3 colleagues, but practitioners tell us that there is still a huge amount to learn once they have achieved this level. The aim of this apprenticeship is to make visible the inter relationship between intellectual and practical capabilities. As the trailblazer group we are not responsible for job titles, job evaluations or salaries, but we recognise that the apprenticeship might be a useful piece of the jigsaw in such discussions. There are a range of key roles within the education workforce which do not use the phrase ‘teaching assistant’ in their title and yet this apprenticeship will be appropriate in enabling high quality specialist training for such endeavours.

In terms of Early Years, this standard will have value in relation to colleagues looking to extend their knowledge through continuing professional development. The Department for Education (DfE) defines which qualifications count as full and relevant when working within the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). The Level 5 Specialist Teaching Assistant standard is not mapped to the DfE criteria and so on its own cannot count in the ‘qualified’ staff: child ratio, rather it is appropriate for staff who are already qualified and who are seeking to develop a specialism.

As a consequence of this apprenticeship, colleagues will

– become knowledgeable practitioners who can advance learning in an informed and enabling manner within their specialist area, leading others through their thoughtful practices.  

– be able to adapt practices in a principled way.

– be capable communicators interacting with learners, parents, professionals, colleagues and agencies to the support and advocate for the quality of learning.

– benefit from exploring the productive connection between research, key concepts and systematic knowledge so as to expand and enrich their approaches to working with children and young people.

– develop others by working alongside them directly with children and young people.

The detailed knowledge skills and behaviours (KSBs), together with the duties and end point assessment (EPA) framework can be found on the Institute for apprenticeships and technical education‘s (IfATE) website at: https://www.instituteforapprenticeships.org/apprenticeship-standards/specialist-teaching-assistant

Over the next few weeks, once we have a decision from the DfE with regard to the funding band, providers and End Point Assessors will be developing their programmes. In this section we will share course details as they are developed. If colleagues would like their information to be included here, please email staa.trailblazer@gmail.com

• Aspirations Academies Trust (Covering West London, North Oxfordshire area,  South Coast – Bournemouth to Portland and in between)
• Barnsley College (details to follow)
• Educational and Sporting Futures (We deliver across most areas of the country. We are most prominent in: Hertfordshire, London, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Milton Keynes, Bedfordshire, Kent)
• Manor Green School (hyperlink to Manor Green School), a large Special needs school and provider of apprenticeships would be delighted to support your school in obtaining a Level 5 Specialist Teaching Assistant Apprenticeship.  The team of assessors has over 20 years’ experience in working in a SEN school and we will support you at your workplace. If you are in Bucks or Berkshire, do contact us at: Apprenticeships@manorgreenschool.co.uk
• National Society for Education (Church of England and Church in Wales) will be providing the level 5 specialist TA apprenticeship in partnership with Roehampton University
• Orange Moon
• Tarka Learning Partnership, Devon (details to follow)
• Walsall College (details to be confirmed)

We are planning a series of launch events when details of the apprenticeship will be shared by colleagues who have been involved in the development of the standard.

Date	Time	Location	Further Details
24th October 2024	3:30pm – 5:00pm	University of Cambridge Primary School	Invitation