Job Title: SEMH Teaching Assistant – Nurture, Challenge, Support
Location: Newcastle
Salary: £83–£95 per day (PAYE)
Contract: Full-time, Long-Term
Start Date: September 2025
When a young person’s world feels tough, you could be the one who makes school feel safe again.
We’re working with a specialist school in Newcastle that provides a fresh start for pupils with social, emotional, and mental health (SEMH) needs. This isn’t mainstream education—it’s something more flexible, more human, and far more focused on the individual child.
Right now, they’re looking for an SEMH Teaching Assistant who’s calm under pressure, firm but kind, and genuinely wants to help young people get back on track.
If you’ve got a background in care, mentoring, youth work or even just real-life experience of overcoming challenge with empathy and strength—this could be your chance to turn that into something powerful.
What you’ll be doing:
1. Supporting pupils 1:1 or in small groups who may have experienced trauma, anxiety, or disrupted education
2. Helping to re-build trust in learning through consistent routines, clear boundaries, and positive relationships
3. Working closely with teaching staff, therapists, and parents to create personalised learning journeys
4. Supporting emotional regulation, behaviour plans, and day-to-day wellbeing
5. Modelling resilience, patience, and calm decision-making—even on the trickiest days
We’re looking for someone who:
6. Has experience with children or young people with SEMH or behavioural needs (formal or informal)
7. Knows how to stay steady when emotions run high
8. Understands that progress looks different for every pupil—and celebrates the small wins
9. Can work as part of a team but use their initiative too
10. Is ready to take up free Thrive or trauma-informed training through us
Why join Protocol Education?
11. Weekly PAYE pay (no umbrella deductions)
12. Access to specialist SEND CPD including Thrive training
13. Local consultant support with real knowledge of Newcastle’s SEMH provisions
14. Simple, transparent registration with fast feedback
15. Opportunities that value who you are—not just what’s on your CV
This is a school that never gives up on its pupils—and they need support staff who feel the same. If that sounds like you, let’s chat.
Apply now or get in touch to talk through the role in more detail.
All applicants will require the appropriate qualifications and training for this role. Please see the FAQs on the Protocol Education website for further details.
All pay rates quoted will be inclusive of statutory holiday pay. This advert is for a temporary position. In some cases, the option to make this role permanent may become available at a later date.
Protocol Education is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. We undertake safeguarding checks on all workers in accordance with the DfE statutory guidance ‘Keeping Children Safe in Education’, this may also include an online search as part of our due diligence on shortlisted applicants.
We offer FREE online safeguarding and Prevent Duty training to all our workers. All candidates must undertake or have undertaken a valid enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check and subscribe to the DBS Update Service.
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