Schools in England risk “haemorrhaging” vital teaching assistants to better-paid jobs in supermarkets and other places because of the cost of living crisis with recruitment becoming increasingly difficult, according to a report.
Headteachers have also said that cuts to school budgets and promised staff pay rises – that will not be funded by the government – will put schools in a desperate situation and many will have to cut TA roles, taking away support for some of the most vulnerable children.
Researchers at the University of Portsmouth’s Education Research, Innovation and Consultancy Unit said the “chronic” low pay of TAs – despite their increased role in many schools – was an “an urgent threat to TAs’ livelihoods and to schools”.
