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Teaching Assistant in the Junior School

Information Pack

Completed applications should be emailed to [email protected]

Closing date: 09:00 on Monday 5 June 2023

Teaching Assistant in the Junior School



We are looking to recruit a creative, adaptable and inspiring teaching assistant to join our highly skilled
team in September 2023. This position is part-time working from 11am to 6pm Monday to Friday.

The individual appointed will work for 180 days during school terms, which are shorter than in most LA
schools. They will plan, lead and deliver activities for individual pupils and groups, including break and
lunchtimes. They will supervise children around the school and on visits and assist teachers with the
practical day-to-day running of busy classrooms. The successful candidate will require enthusiasm, good
organisation and enjoy the company of able young people.



MGS Junior School
The Junior School is comprised of some 250 boys, aged 7 to 11. Boys are selected for entry on the basis of
their extraordinary potential by observing their individual talents in imaginative lessons, not by a
traditional entrance examination.

Junior School pupils are full members of MGS and do not need to pass any further test to enter the Senior
School. The Junior School curriculum is broad and challenging, directed towards the special needs of
gifted and talented boys with great potential. It includes exciting project work, novel subjects and a rich
sporting programme. Core subjects are taught, supplemented by a wide range of enrichment activities.

The Junior School is housed in purpose-built, award-winning accommodation on the main school site and
is very well-resourced. Junior School pupils and staff benefit from the use of many of the Senior School’s
excellent specialist facilities, including its sports hall, theatre, swimming pool, art studios and science
laboratories.

Teaching Assistant in the Junior School job description
Within the Junior School, we have a team of teaching assistants who work closely with the teachers to
provide high quality pastoral care and an exciting, challenging curriculum. Teaching Assistants work under
the guidance of the teaching staff and senior leaders. They provide support to individuals and groups both
in and out of the classroom. Applicants must have a good level of Maths and English to be able to plan and
deliver support groups. All staff are required to support and promote the School’s Safeguarding Policy.

Wraparound Care

• To provide high quality care, meaningful activities and homework support to pupils accessing

• To safeguard children in Wraparound Care by ensuring that pupils are signed in and out and that

Working in Class

• To work with class teachers and specialist teachers to support teaching and learning for individuals

• To supervise pupils moving between classes and escorting them around the site

Breaktimes and Lunchtimes
• To provide supervision and support for children during less-structured times such as morning

break and lunchtime
• To supervise children in the Refectory, on the playground and in buildings
• To provide lunchtime clubs and activities

Support Groups

• To work with teachers to plan, delivery and review support outside the classroom for individuals

Trips and Residentials

• To support and accompany children on trips and visits as required, including residentials

Why work at MGS?

The School

The Manchester Grammar School has a long and distinguished history, and is an exciting, stimulating and
rewarding community in which to work.

It was founded in 1515, by Hugh Oldham, Bishop of Exeter, to prepare able boys from the Manchester area,
regardless of their background, to go to Oxford or Cambridge. The School has gained an international
reputation for academic excellence, and enjoys a strong record of success with top universities, both in the
UK and overseas.

We take our motto, Sapere Aude (‘Dare to be Wise’), as meaning that we must challenge our pupils and
expect to be challenged by them, and this is one of the things which makes teaching at MGS so rewarding.

Bursaries and social mobility

MGS’s Foundation Bursary Appeal has been the most successful appeal of its kind held by any school and
is a cornerstone of our ethos. Its aim is to ensure that a place at MGS is available to any boy who passes
our entrance assessments, regardless of his family’s financial background. More than 200 boys currently
receive full or partial means-tested bursaries. (The average bursary is 90% of the school fee.) Our long-
term ambition is to be needs-blind, so that every boy who passes our entrance assessments can take up a
place, regardless of his parents’ ability to pay.

Our pupils

The School comprises over 1500 boys in Years 3 to 13. All boys are assessed for entry on the basis of their
considerable potential by observing their individual talents in imaginative lessons. A formal entrance exam
only plays a part in entry to Year 7. Our admissions policy aims to be needs-blind to enable the School to
be a diverse community of talented individuals from all backgrounds.

Boys come from across the North-West and from every type of background, and the boys who join the
School each year come in equal numbers from maintained and independent primary schools.

Our teachers

Staff at MGS come from every walk of life. Every year we welcome to our staff NQTs as well as experienced
teachers. We expect all applicants to have a good degree. However, a teaching qualification, whilst
desirable, is not essential; we can and do provide full support for those who wish to become qualified after
appointment. Often teachers who have taught for a number of years join us to gain extra experience before
moving on to become a head of department elsewhere. We are deeply committed to the professional
development of our staff. Many colleagues have gone on to deputy headships and headships elsewhere;
likewise, many staff choose to stay with us.

People who teach here will have a love of their subject and will have the ability to inspire and challenge
able pupils. Our teachers enjoy making an active contribution to co-curricular activities, both for the
reward of the activity itself and because of the different dimension it gives to their relationship with their
pupils.

Our co-curriculum

The co-curriculum is central to the ethos of MGS. Life outside the classroom is extraordinarily vibrant, both
in terms of its diversity and quantity, and is a source of great enjoyment and challenge for our pupils and
staff alike. It includes a vast amount and range of sport, music, drama, adventure, service and intellectual
activities.

The School values the passion and commitment of its teachers in sharing their interests and enthusiasms
with pupils outside of the classroom and seeks to enable staff to play to their passions whenever possible.
Staff are given great autonomy over the activities they organise, and our pupils are given equal freedom to
develop passions of their own.

We have lunchtime clubs and societies (many run by pupils) covering every possible area of intellectual
interest. We have 24 musical groups with 280 participants, and typically stage a dozen drama productions
each year, in our superbly equipped theatre and drama studios. We have 95 sports teams and 40 different
sports. In outdoor pursuits every year we have numerous treks in the UK and overseas, as well as four
camps involving 250 pupils. We offer a wide range of outdoor pursuits and are one of the largest centres
for D of E in the North West. Alongside this there is a vast range of educational trips and visits, both in the
UK and abroad. On average, each pupil spends twelve days a year on trips.

Visit our website to find out more.

Our facilities

Recent developments have included the purchase of a new Steinway Model D grand piano for the Memorial
Hall. There is also a new sports hall, major upgrades to our multi-gym, swimming pool and sports pitches,
and a new, exceptionally equipped theatre and drama studios.

Manchester and the North-West

Manchester is a vibrant and exciting place, as you would fully expect of Britain’s second city. One of the
fastest growing cities in Europe, it has a cosmopolitan outlook, a flourishing, varied cultural life and
excellent restaurants and nightlife. It is a wonderful, stimulating place to live, with outstanding sport and
leisure facilities, catering for every possible interest.

Theatre is vibrant and diverse, with venues including the innovative Royal Exchange, Home, The Lowry (in
Salford Quays), Palace Theatre and Opera House. The Bridgewater Hall is an international centre of musical
excellence and home to three major orchestras, whilst the Manchester Evening News Arena, the Apollo and
many smaller venues contribute to the diverse range of music on offer in the city.

Befitting a city with such rich history and traditions, Manchester has excellent galleries and museums, and
is, of course, a major centre for soccer, cricket, cycling and many other sports. Media City in Salford
(adjacent to Manchester) is one of the country’s most important centres for television and radio
production, and is growing all the time.

Whilst offering all that you would expect from a major city, Manchester has the advantage of being very
accessible and enjoys excellent transport links. London is only two hours away by train and Manchester’s
international airport is only five miles from the School. Areas of outstanding natural beauty are close by.
The Peak District National Park, the Pennine Way and the Cheshire Plain are within an hour’s drive, whilst
the Lake District and Snowdonia are within two hours.

There is a wide choice of places to live, with ample rented accommodation. Property prices compare very
favourably with those elsewhere in the country. Many staff live in the South Manchester suburbs, but
others live surrounded by the Pennine moors or the Derbyshire hills. There is an excellent choice of
schools, both private and maintained, at all levels.

For more information about the city, visit www.visitmanchester.com.

How to apply

Candidates of any age and any level of experience are invited to apply. Appropriate induction and support
will be given.

Further information about the School is available on our website.

Applicants should complete an application form: this can be downloaded from the vacancies section of the
School’s website, and emailed to [email protected]. The closing date is 9.00am on Monday 5 June and
we expect to hold interviews shortly after.

The Manchester Grammar School is an equal opportunities employer and we welcome applications from
all sections of the community. We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children
and successful applicants will be required to undergo child protection screening appropriate to the post,
including checks with past employers and the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS).

Our Safer Recruitment policy may be viewed on our website (click on ‘our policies’ at the bottom of the
homepage).

We would like to thank all applicants for their interest in the School and for taking the time to apply.
However, please note that, because of the high volume of applications we receive, we regret that we
are unable to reply individually to each application. Applicants who have not heard from us by 12
June should assume that they have not been shortlisted for interview.

May 2023