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Honeyguide School Leader Support

Support Staff Skills Audit Pack

Support Staff Skills Audit Pack

Looking to identify the skills and development points of support staff in your setting? Or perhaps you're a teaching assistant, LSA or learning coach who wants to explore your role-specific strengths and weaknesses as part of your ongoing development or when looking for a new role. No matter the situation, this handy pack contains exactly what you need to uncover strengths and plan for professional development & growth.
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What's included in this bundle?

A quick-and-easy pack to audit the skills of a member of your support staff. This pack contains concise guidance to support you in effectively utilising the skills audit, whether you're line managing a TA, LSA or other support staff member or whether you're a teaching assistant yourself who's wanting to evaluate their strengths and areas for improvement. 

Included is a 16-page template covering the different areas of skills that a member of support staff may need - this is further broken down into sections that are specific to the following roles:

  • EYFS practitioners
  • SEND support staff
  • Higher-level teaching assistants (HLTAs)
  • Cover supervisors
  • Midday supervisors (e.g. an MTA or lunchtime supervisor)
  • Wrap-around care assistants (e.g. those who support in breakfast and after-school clubs)

The audit also contains questions that are applicable to support staff no matter the role, including sections such as safeguarding pupils, teaching, learning and meeting pupil needs, and working with others. This means that the audit is multi-purpose and there are questions to suit many role types, e.g. for teaching assistants who also cover after-school club, or for LSAs who have a specific focus on a particular area of SEND. For school leaders, this means the audits can also be adapted and re-used multiple times.

Questions from the support staff audit include:

  • How do you perceive your role in safeguarding children within the school environment?
  • Do you consistently use behaviour management strategies in line with school policy?
  • How do you support pupil’s learning in small groups (e.g. interventions)?
  • Do you liaise regularly with the SEND team regarding the needs of individuals?

Who will find this resource useful?

The pack is aimed at supporting members of your school's support staff and can be used by anyone who line manages a TA, such as a key stage leader, phase leader, head of department, SENDCo, DSL or pastoral leader. This can help to inform appraisal and performance management processes, as well as identify CPD needs for the teaching assistant.

What questions does this pack have the answers to?

Whether staff members are new-to-role or have vast experience in their area, skills audits are a valuable self-evaluation tool. When a staff member reflects on their competencies and expertise, they’ll gain a comprehensive understanding of the strengths they bring to their role while identifying opportunities for growth or next steps. This self-awareness can boost confidence and self-belief, as well as enabling individuals to articulate their unique contributions to the team.

When skill gaps are identified, performance targets can include specific objectives aimed at addressing these gaps, allowing those with line management responsibilities to support the staff member through professional development and further training. Skills audits can also help school leaders to create balanced teams, prepare for change, support staff retention and assist in succession planning. 

Key questions answered:

  • Why is it important for staff to utilise skills audits?
  • How should a skills audit be conducted?
  • How can skills audits inform performance management targets?
  • How can leaders identify individual staff training needs?
  • What other ways can skills audits be used?

What else can help me?

Skills audits can be used as a valuable part of the induction process when a new staff member joins your team. Find out more about how to craft staff induction procedures that allow staff to get off to a flying start in your setting with the following pack:

If you know that your staff have training and development needs, and are looking to enhance your CPD planning, this pack will support your thinking: 

If you're thinking about recruiting a member of support staff, and want to use the skills audit as part of that process, then you'll find the following packs and pages useful too: