Southchurch High School has reduced its teaching assistants from nine to five due to financial challenges, impacting support for students with special needs.
Southchurch: So, Southchurch High School has made some big changes lately. They’ve cut down the number of teaching assistants from nine to just five. This is all part of their effort to improve the school.
These teaching assistants play a crucial role, especially when it comes to helping kids with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND). With more students needing support, this cut is raising some eyebrows.
The school got out of special measures last December, which is a good sign. They were rated as “requires improvement” by Ofsted and are now pushing to do even better.
Tracy Airoll, the headteacher, mentioned that financial issues are behind these cuts. She explained that like many schools, they had to restructure last year, which led to losing four teaching assistant positions.
But she reassured everyone that the five remaining assistants are doing a great job supporting SEND students. No teachers lost their jobs, and they won’t have to take on extra duties either. They’re confident that the kids will still get the help they need.
On the flip side, Laurie Burton, a local councillor, expressed his concerns. He thinks the school has too many managers and that cutting teaching assistants isn’t the right move. He believes schools should first look at their senior management when budgets are tight.
Southchurch High School, which replaced the old Futures Community College, serves around 794 students aged 11 to 16. After a recent inspection, the Ofsted inspector noted that the school is making progress in addressing past concerns and that the staff is committed to improving the education experience for students.
