Skills Practitioner - Art and Design

Ashford College; Ashford; On-site; GBP 7,800 - 8,200; Part time

Job summary

East Kent Colleges Group is seeking an Art Skills Practitioner to support staff and students in an active workshop environment. You will help deliver practical learning, ensure resources are well‑stocked and workshops are safe, and provide guidance to students as they develop practical art skills.

The role focuses on hands‑on teaching, COSHH awareness, and working closely with colleagues to maintain high quality learning experiences. Part‑time role with a focus on safe, well‑equipped sessions.

Qualifications

• Must have Level 3 qualification in Art.
• Some industry experience in the Art sector.
• Knowledge of COSHH and Health & Safety in art and design.

Responsibilities

• Monitor and promote Health & Safety practices within workshop sessions.
• Order, organise, and issue stock and supplies for sessions.
• Assist in workshop preparation for classes and demonstrations.
• Provide constructive feedback and support to students.

Skills

Organised

Hands-on

Positive attitude

Education

Level 3 qualification in Art

Tools

Hand and power tools

Clay wedging

Sewing machines

Woodworking tools

Castable materials handling

Job description

About The Role

Art Skills Practitioner

As a Skills Practitioner within Art and Design you’ll play an important part in supporting both staff and students, helping to deliver high-quality, hands-on learning experiences.

You’ll liaise with colleagues and external partners, support learners to reach their goals, and ensure workshops are safe, well‑organised, and fully equipped.

In this role, you will:

• Monitor and promote excellent Health & Safety practices within workshop sessions
• Order, organise, and issue stock and supplies to keep sessions running smoothly
• Assist in workshop preparation
• Provide constructive feedback and support to students

Hours per week: 11
Salary per year: £7,829

Alongside our priority of excellent student experience, we focus on our employees. Take a look at the variety of benefits on our careers website.

About You

Are you organised, hands‑on, and positive about helping others? We’re looking for someone who enjoys supporting others to develop practical skills and confidence, while contributing to outstanding teaching and learning.

What are we looking for?

• You will be confident to support and guide learners through practical tasks
• You will have a Level 3 qualification in Art
• You will have some industry experience in the Art sector
• You will have knowledge of working in a practical art environment which may include

• wedging clay ready for wheel use
• recycling clay using plaster slab
• working with plaster of paris
• casting and model making skills
• printmaking processes
• woodworking skills
• the ability to use hand and power tools effectively
• stretcher making using lap joints by hand
• use of sewing machines

• You will also have knowledge of COSHH, and Health and Safety in art and design

If you have any queries about this role or would like to come in for a tour of the department, please email us on [e-mail]

About Us

Outstanding Ofsted Provider

East Kent Colleges Group is an Ofsted Outstanding rated provider. It is proud to be the first General Further Education college organisation in the country to have received the Outstanding grade against each of the strands under the new Ofsted inspection framework. An inclusive provider, our colleagues place our students and the communities we serve at the heart of everything they do across EKC Group and this is illustrated in our ‘Strong’ skills grading by Ofsted.

Commitment to Safeguarding

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults and we ensure that all staff are aware of their responsibilities for upholding these principles.

As a designated establishment, we are exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and therefore have an obligation to carry out checks to ensure that staff are suitable to work with children and vulnerable adults. These checks include conviction/caution self‑declaration, Enhanced DBS check and obtaining sufficient referencing.

It is a criminal offence to apply for a post which involves engaging in regulated activity relevant to children if you are barred from doing so.

If you are successful in being shortlisted to interview, your suitability to work with children and vulnerable adults will be explored as part of the interview process.

Commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

East Kent CollegesGroup is an equal opportunities employer and welcomes applications from all members of our communities. We are particularly keen to increase the diversity of our staff body and encourage applications from candidates where there is underrepresentation in our workforce.

We are proud to hold the Positive About Disability Award and are a Disability Confident Employer. This confirms our commitment to interviewing all applicants who declare that they have a disability and who meet the essential criteria outlined in the person specification. With any successful candidate, we will explore any reasonable adjustments to a role due to a health needs or disability.

Similarly, we have a commitment to Care Leavers (Care Covenant Pledge) and to current or previous Armed Forces personnel (Armed Forces Covenant Pledge) with a commitment to interview applicants who meet the positions essential criteria and who have declared this on their application.

We welcome applications from anyone wishing to work flexibly and those considering a return to work from a career break.

We do not engage with agencies for permanent staff and have an in-house recruitment team.