Action called for to regulate use of teaching assistants

Tighter regulation is needed to stop schools asking teaching assistants to take on too many teaching responsibilities, according to Unison.

Speaking at the union’s annual conference last week, Unison national secretary Christina McAnea said TAs were often being asked to take whole classes.

Many have not received the right training or support for the duties they are being asked to perform, and they are also not paid for them.

“We are pushing the government and the employers to provide much tighter regulations and for these to be more closely monitored,” said McAnea.