Early Years/KS1 Teaching Assistant

The Cathedral School of St Peter and St John RC Primary

Mount Street. Salford, M3 6LU

Telephone: 0161 834 4150

Email: thecathedralsch@st-peter-st-john.salford.sch.uk

Website: www.cathedralschoolstpeterandjohn.com

Head Teacher: Mrs D Hanley

Job Title: Early Years/KS1 Teaching Assistant

Date required: September or nearest starting date

“Growing together within God’s loving family, we support, challenge and inspire each other to become the best that we can be.”

The Governing Body and Head Teacher of The Cathedral School of St Peter and St John RC Primary are seeking to appoint an enthusiastic and highly motivated Teaching Assistant to join our excellent Early Years team.

The successful candidate will be experienced working with young children and will have excellent communication skills, be confident, positive and professional. It is essential to have good knowledge and understanding of early child development and learning and the revised Early Years Foundation Stage framework.

About Us Our dedicated and hard-working staff all contribute to our strong Catholic ethos, creating a warm and welcoming school for all. We strive to ensure the best education and wellbeing so that all are given every opportunity to become the best that they can be.

Please find attached job description and person specification which you should use to complete your application. Visits to the school in advance are encouraged, please email thecathedralsch@st-peter-st-john.salford.sch.uk if you wish to make arrangements to visit the school prior to submitting an application.

Job Purpose

To work under the guidance of the class teacher to support teaching and learning within the Early Years Foundation Stage and/or Year 1, enabling all children to achieve their full potential academically, socially, emotionally and spiritually.

The successful candidate will play a key role in delivering high-quality learning experiences, with a particular emphasis on the teaching of systematic synthetic phonics, developing children’s oracy and communication skills, and supporting the development of secure early mathematical understanding. They will actively promote the Catholic ethos and values of the school in all aspects of their work.

Main Duties and Responsibilities

Supporting Teaching and Learning

• Work alongside the class teacher to deliver engaging and inclusive learning experiences.
• Support children individually, in small groups and within whole-class teaching.
• Prepare, organise and maintain high-quality learning resources and classroom environments.
• Observe, monitor and record children’s progress, providing accurate feedback to the class teacher.
• Contribute to planning and assessment through discussion with teaching staff.

Phonics

• Deliver high-quality daily phonics sessions and targeted interventions using the school’s chosen systematic synthetic phonics programme.
• Reinforce correct letter formation, blending, segmenting and phoneme recognition throughout the school day.
• Support pupils requiring additional phonics intervention to ensure they make accelerated progress.
• Promote a love of reading through storytelling, shared reading and rich language experiences.
• Model accurate pronunciation and clear spoken language at all times.

Oracy and Communication

• Promote high-quality talk across all areas of learning.
• Develop children’s vocabulary through purposeful conversations, questioning and discussion.
• Model effective speaking and listening skills.
• Encourage children to express their ideas, explain their thinking and engage confidently with others.
• Support children with speech, language and communication needs through planned interventions and classroom strategies.
• Foster positive relationships that build children’s confidence and communication skills.

Early Number

• Support the teaching of early mathematics through practical, play-based and structured learning experiences.
• Develop children’s understanding of counting, number sense, composition of number, subitising and mathematical language.
• Use manipulatives and visual representations to support conceptual understanding.
• Reinforce mathematical learning during continuous provision and everyday classroom routines.
• Deliver targeted interventions to support pupils working below age-related expectations.

Supporting the Catholic Ethos

• Support and promote the distinctive Catholic character of the school.
• Encourage children to live out Gospel values including kindness, respect, forgiveness and service.
• Participate in acts of collective worship, liturgies and celebrations of the Church’s liturgical year.
• Foster an inclusive environment where every child is valued as a unique individual created in the image of God.

Safeguarding and Pastoral Care

• Promote the safeguarding and welfare of all pupils.
• Maintain high expectations of behaviour in accordance with school policies.
• Build positive relationships with children and families.
• Support children’s emotional wellbeing and personal development.

Professional Responsibilities

• Work collaboratively with teachers, support staff, SENDCo, parents and external agencies.
• Participate in staff meetings, training and professional development.
• Maintain confidentiality and comply with GDPR requirements.
• Undertake duties in accordance with school policies, Salford Local Authority guidance and statutory safeguarding requirements.

Closing Date: 28th August 2026

Shortlisting: Week beginning 31st August 2026

Interview and Task: Week Beginning 7th September 2026

Commencement Date: End of September or earliest date subject to checks

The school is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. This post is subject to a fully enhanced DBS check.

Where you have lived or worked abroad for 12 months or more, continuously or in total over the last 10 years whilst age 18 or over, please refer to the link below for details for how to obtain your Certificates of Good Character:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/criminal-records-checks-for-overseas-applicants

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