SEN Teaching Assistant - Wakefield
Job description
Original text imported from Reed
1:1 SEN Teaching Assistant
- Location: Wakefield
- Contract: Full-time / Term-time only
- Day rate: £92 - £110
About the Role
We are seeking a dedicated and compassionate 1:1 SEN Teaching Assistant to join our Wakefield Schools. This role involves working closely with a pupil who has special educational needs, providing tailored, consistent support to help them engage positively in learning and school life.
Key Responsibilities
- Provide individualised 1:1 support to a pupil with SEN.
- Help the pupil regulate emotions, develop social skills, and build resilience.
- Implement strategies from EHCPs, behaviour plans and staff guidance.
- Work collaboratively with SENCO, class teachers and external professionals.
- Create a safe, nurturing, and structured environment for the pupil.
- Support academic tasks, engagement in lessons and positive behaviour.
- Record and report progress, incidents and achievements appropriately.
We are looking for someone who is:
- Patient, empathetic and calm under pressure.
- Passionate about supporting children with additional needs.
- Able to build strong, trusting relationships with young people.
- Confident using de-escalation strategies and restorative approaches.
- Adaptable and proactive, with a positive “can-do” attitude.
- Experienced in SEMH settings (desirable but not essential).
- Willing to undertake relevant training.
If you think this is the ideal role for you, please click ‘Apply’ and send your CV.
All applicants will require the appropriate qualifications and training for this role. Please see the FAQ’s on the Teaching Personnel website for details.
All pay rates quoted will be inclusive of 12.07% 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.
Teaching Personnel is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. We undertake safeguarding checks on all workers in accordance with 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 all our registered candidates FREE child protection and prevent duty training. All candidates must undertake or have undertaken a valid enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check. Full assistance provided.
For details of our privacy policy, please visit the Teaching Personnel website.
Key skills
AI-extracted from the job advert
Application advice
5 AI-generated recommendations to maximise your chances.
⭐ Lead your CV personal statement with direct 1:1 SEN experience, as the advert specifically seeks someone for a dedicated 1:1 pupil support role in Wakefield schools.
📊 Quantify your impact: e.g. 'Supported a Year 4 pupil with SEMH needs across 3 terms, contributing to a 40% reduction in recorded behavioural incidents'.
🎯 Explicitly reference EHCP implementation and behaviour plan delivery in your experience section — the advert lists these as core responsibilities.
🤝 Highlight collaboration with SENCOs, class teachers and external professionals, as multi-agency working is a named requirement in the role description.
🛡️ Confirm your enhanced DBS status and any child protection or safeguarding training (e.g. Prevent Duty) prominently in your CV, as Teaching Personnel mandates these checks for all workers.
Suggested CV bullets
3 bullets our AI drafted for this specific advert, mirroring its ATS keywords.
Add these 3 bullets under your most recent experience:
- •Delivered daily 1:1 support to a Year 3 pupil with an EHCP, implementing tailored emotion-regulation strategies that contributed to a 35% reduction in classroom disruption incidents over one academic term.
- •Collaborated with the SENCO and 2 external speech and language therapists to review and update behaviour plans for 4 pupils with SEMH needs, ensuring consistent delivery across a 6-teacher team.
- •Completed enhanced DBS clearance and DfE-aligned safeguarding training, maintaining 100% compliance with 'Keeping Children Safe in Education' requirements across 3 consecutive school placements.
Free to copy — tailoring requires a 30-sec CV upload.
Your cover letter is ready
We've drafted a cover letter for Teaching Personnel. Preview the opening, then unlock the full personalised version.
Letter preview — tailored to Teaching Personnel
Dear Hiring Manager,
Teaching Personnel's 1:1 SEN Teaching Assistant vacancy in Wakefield stands out as a role where I can apply my experience in EHCP implementation and de-escalation strategies to make a measurable difference for a pupil with special educational needs. Supporting children with SEMH needs through structured, consistent 1:1 relationships is work I find genuinely rewarding, and I hold a valid enhanced DBS certificate.
My background in SEN support includes working alongside SENCOs and class teachers to deliver behaviour plans and emotion-regulation strategies, recording progress and incidents accurately, and adapting approaches in response to a pupil's daily needs. I have completed child protection and safeguarding training in line with DfE guidance and am committed to maintaining a safe, nurturing environment for every child I work with.
Free signup, no card needed. Export to PDF/Word requires a £1.99 trial (14 days).
Interview questions
10 questions generated from this advert.
Technical
- ›How do you implement strategies outlined in an EHCP to support a pupil's daily learning?
- ›What de-escalation techniques have you used with pupils experiencing SEMH difficulties?
- ›How do you record and report a pupil's progress, incidents and achievements in line with school policy?
- ›Can you describe how you would adapt a lesson activity to support a pupil with complex special educational needs?
- ›What is your understanding of the DfE's 'Keeping Children Safe in Education' guidance and how does it inform your practice?
Behavioural
- ›Tell me about a time you supported a pupil through an emotional crisis — what did you do and what was the outcome?
- ›Describe a situation where you had to adapt your approach quickly to meet a pupil's changing needs.
- ›Give an example of when you worked closely with a SENCO or external professional to improve outcomes for a pupil.
- ›Tell me about a time you built a trusting relationship with a child who was initially resistant to support.
- ›Describe a challenging behaviour you encountered in a school setting and how you used restorative approaches to resolve it.
STAR answer examples
Model answers using the Situation-Task-Action-Result framework. Adapt to your own experience.
Tell me about a time you supported a pupil through an emotional crisis — what did you do and what was the outcome?
Describe a situation where you had to adapt your approach quickly to meet a pupil's changing needs.