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Full job description
Job Details
Key Responsibilities
Lead Teaching Assistant for Neurodiversity
28 Hours 50 Minutes per week
8:40am – 3:15pm including a 55-minute unpaid break
Fortnightly one hour after school meeting
Monday to Friday – Term Time Only
Grade 5 SCP 7 – SCP 8
Starting Salary £17,328.17
Start: 2nd September 2026
11 – 16, mixed, NOR – 1250
Downlands Community School is a thriving, inclusive and ambitious school committed to taking every pupil beyond their lived experience. We are seeking a Lead Teaching Assistant for Neurodiversity.
At Downlands, we live our ROCKS values: Resilience, Optimism, Community, Kindness and Self-Awareness.
The successful candidate will model and champion these values.
Can you make a difference to pupils who need extra help and support with their learning?
Key Responsibilities
- Work collaboratively with teaching staff and use contextual student information to identify and support pupils with Autism Spectrum Condition (ASC), ASC traits, and ADHD.
- Support neurodiverse pupils to access the curriculum effectively through appropriate strategies, interventions, and adaptive teaching approaches.
- Work alongside the Assistant SENDCo, SENDCo, and Lead SEND Teaching Assistant to promote an inclusive ethos surrounding neurodiversity across the school.
- Contribute to staff training and support the development of adaptive teaching practices that meet the needs of neurodiverse learners.
- Foster positive relationships with students, staff, and families to ensure pupils receive consistent and effective support.
Join a school where every child — and every member of staff — can thrive.
Further Information
Downlands Community School and West Sussex County Council are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. We will ensure that all our recruitment and selection practices reflect this commitment. All successful candidates will be subject to an appropriate Disclosure and Barring Service check along with other relevant employment checks, including satisfactory references.
This school and West Sussex County Council are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. We will ensure that all our recruitment and selection practices reflect this commitment.
All successful candidates will be subject to an appropriate Disclosure and Barring Service check along with other relevant employment checks, including satisfactory references.
Shortlisted applicants will be subject to an online search. This is not part of the short-listing process itself, and you will get a chance to address any issues of concern that some up during the search, at interview.
How to Apply
Further details, application forms can be downloaded from our website https://www.downlands.w-sussex.sch.uk under “Vacancies” or from our Recruitment Office [email protected]
The closing date for applications is 9am on Monday 1st June 2026.
NOTE TO CANDIDATES – Please do not select the ‘Apply online’ button as the School processes your applications directly rather than through this site.
Job Reference: SCHO02441