DescriptionEmployerLocation
We are looking for a passionate and inspirational Therapy Assistant to join our team at The Springfields Academy.
Post: Therapy Assistant
Location: Curzon Street, Calne. Wilshire, SN11 0DS
FTE Salary Range: Grade H Pt 15-17: £31,537 - £33,699
Actual Salary Range: £25,220 - £26,949, Pro Rata
Contract Type: Permanent, Part-time, Term Time Only
Contracted Hours: 33.25 hrs Per week, 39 weeks per year
The Role:
We are looking for a Therapy Assistant to join our child-centred team. Springfields is a fantastic, vibrant and caring community that engages pupils. Our autism approach is accessed by all our pupils and is personalised to meet specific needs. All our pupils have an education, health and care plan. The Springfields Academy is a Reach South Academy for young people aged 4-19 with autism, we are proud to hold the NAS Advanced specialist award and to be recognised as an Ofsted good school. We have 268 pupils attending our provision. Our goal is to build safe independent lives for autistic young people through support, understanding and enablement. Part of the excitement of working at Springfields is the broad range of individuals that you will care for. A key aspect of working at Springfields is taking the time to get to know pupils and their individual needs, and given their complexity, being able to create a safe, stimulating and supportive learning environment is crucial. You will be joining a happy, hardworking and well-established team. You will also work in partnership with our multi-disciplinary therapy team as part of our therapy first culture. About the successful candidate The position of Therapy Assistant is an exciting opportunity for a passionate and compassionate individual to lead interventions and support our learners with autism.
Key skills: • To have a good knowledge and understanding of autism and social communication needs and appropriate strategies to support pupils with this need. • To have knowledge and understanding of social, emotional & mental health needs and cognitive needs, that affect children and young people's development. • Excellent listening skills • An ability to build strong, trusting relationships • To be resilient and able to work autonomously • Promote and support the inclusion of all pupils in activities that they enjoy • To use positive and personalised anxiety management strategies
About the School:
The Springfields Academy is specialist academy for 268 pupils aged 4-19 who have a diagnosis of autism and/or present with a speech, language and communication need. Over recent years the school has substantially grown in response to Wiltshire need and now offers high quality research based education to its population.
The Springfields Academy builds safe, independent lives through support, understanding and enablement for our autistic population. To achieve this goal, we look at the unique impact autism has on the individual child and as a result, personalise the child’s curriculum, care and therapeutic package to ensure every child achieves and experiences success and independence. This model is based on personalisation and innovation, and we pride ourselves on approach to meeting the presenting needs of all pupils.
We are proud to be recognised as an Ofsted ‘Good’ school that holds the NAS Advanced Specialist Award. We have a clear strategic vision of becoming a ‘centre and system of excellence’ for autism and are two years through a four-year plan to achieve this.
What is the Springfields Therapy Offer?
Our Therapy first culture lays the foundation lays the foundation for all our pupils to learn. Our Therapy Team implement our tiers of therapeutic support in Occupational Therapy, Speech and Language and Wellbeing. They detail our whole school and class approaches, group and individual therapy.
What is the curriculum offer? At Springfields we have two clear curriculum pathways. When pupils join us in Reception we assess which Curriculum pathway they will access from year 1. • Discovery Curriculum – semi-formal Pathway. A SemiFormal Curriculum Pathway is a sensory and developmental curriculum, aimed at learners that are in the very early stages of learning and development. Discovery learners work consistently below the National Curriculum, with aspiration to work towards end of Key Stage 1 expectations by the end of Key Stage 4. •
Explorer/Pathfinder Curriculum – following a formal curriculum pathway that makes reference to the National Curriculum. This Pathway is aimed at learners that are able to work within the levels of the national curriculum and Early Years Foundation Stage Framework. However, our curriculum is structured to bespoke curriculum journeys towards aspirational outcomes tailored for our pupils.
What Autism Enablement approaches are in place? Springfields' approach to autism enablement is based on the social model of support, removing barriers to enable our learners to thrive. Pupils benefit from an autism friendly environment and sensory support strategies where the TEACCH principles are embedded throughout our environment at whole school, class and individual level (as required). Our learning approach ensures that pupils have the opportunity to retrieve/recap information, develop key vocabulary and learn key concepts in a variety of ways using our 8 Steps to Lesson Success Model. As well as experiencing a Total Communication Environment, specific speech and language approaches are embedded into our teaching such as Attention Autism, shape coding, word aware, sensory stories, task cards and graphical organisers. In addition, our Discovery learners benefit from Intensive Interaction, Identiplay, PECs, Communication boards and aids and follow the SCERTS communication curriculum. How is Springfields structured? When pupils join us in Reception access a bespoke early years environment where we can gain a greater understanding of their academic and communication profile before they move onto a semi – formal or formal curriculum pathway. Primary and Secondary pupils up to Year 8 benefit from a ‘core class’ approach with consistent staff Pupils in Year 9/10 benefit from a ‘core class’ approach, with limited transitions to their chosen Pathway. We find this approach helps pupils to have a sense of belonging and reduces transitions, which may cause anxiety. Pupils in Year 10/11 can access a subject specific class having built up the self-reliance skills. In order to transition and organise themselves during their Springfields journey.
We reserve the right to interview and appoint prior to the closing date. Therefore, an early application is strongly advised.
Opportunities and Benefits
We offer a competitive salary plus LGPS pension, great career progression and development opportunities, access to our Employee Assistance Programme with many other benefits.
We’re proud of how we support our staff in order that you have high levels of job satisfaction, are aware of the difference you are making for the children and families you work with and can see your contribution towards our community. There are regular opportunities for professional development and training, and a wider community of staff to network with within Reach South Multi Academy Trust. You will have the chance to visit other local schools, work alongside a range of outside professionals and take part in a variety of e-learning and face-to-face training.
We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Each post is subject to an enhanced DBS check.
Reach South Academy Trust has an Equal Opportunities Policy for selection and recruitment. Applicants are requested to complete the Equal Opportunities Monitoring section of the application form before submitting.
Safeguarding Statement
The Springfields Academy is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.We particularly welcome applications from under represented groups including ethnicity, gender, transgender, age, disability, sexual orientation or religion.