SEMH Teaching Assistant - Ipswich | Long-Term Opportunities

Local Education; Ipswich; On-site; GBP 18,000 - 24,000; Full time

Job summary

Local Education in Ipswich is recruiting SEMH Teaching Assistants and Learning Support staff for specialist settings in the Ipswich area, with current and upcoming long‑term requirements. These roles involve more than academic support, focusing on emotional regulation, behaviour and engagement, and building trusting relationships.

The strongest candidates will be calm, resilient and consistent, able to support pupils on difficult days while maintaining boundary and routine.

Qualifications

• Previous SEMH/SEND or specialist education experience is valuable.
• Applicants from backgrounds such as youth work, mentoring, social care, or community work are encouraged.

Responsibilities

• Support emotional regulation for students.
• Assist with behaviour and engagement.
• Build trusting relationships with pupils.
• Contribute to confidence and self-esteem development.

Skills

Calm demeanor

Resilience

Relationship-building

Job description

SEMH Teaching Assistant - Ipswich | Long-Term Opportunities

Location: Ipswich, Suffolk

Advert: Local Education is recruiting Teaching Assistants and Learning Support staff for specialist SEMH settings in the Ipswich area, with current and upcoming long‑term requirements. These positions are about considerably more than simply supporting somebody with their schoolwork.

The young people may require additional support around:

• Emotional regulation
• Behaviour and engagement
• Building trusting relationships
• Confidence and self-esteem
• Re‑engaging with education
• Social and emotional development
• Maintaining consistent routines and boundaries

We are therefore interested in the person behind the CV, not simply whether you already have “Teaching Assistant” as your job title.

Previous experience within SEMH, SEND, alternative provision or specialist education would be extremely valuable, but we are also interested in suitable applicants from backgrounds including:

• Youth work
• Mentoring
• Children's residential care
• Social care
• Sports coaching
• Behaviour support
• Pastoral work
• Family support
• Community work

The strongest candidates for these environments tend to be calm, resilient, consistent and able to build relationships without becoming easily unsettled when pupils are having a difficult day.

The opportunities

We currently have increasing requirements around Ipswich and are particularly interested in people who would consider long‑term positions with the potential to become permanent where the school and candidate are a strong match. Before putting somebody forward, we will speak with you properly about the environment, the pupils and what the school expects. Our in-house Training Manager can also provide additional preparation around safeguarding, Prevent and behaviour management before placement.