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Job Title: Midday Supervisory Assistant Grade: 1 (SCP 3)
Job Location: USWORTH COLLIERY PRIMARY SCHOOL Hours: 7hours 45mins
Directorate: Children’s Services Responsible to: Headteacher
PURPOSE OF JOB:
To supervise pupils who remain on the school premises during midday break, ensuring that the children eat meals safely and behave appropriately.
Duties:
The Midday Supervisory Assistant will:
- ensure that pupils wash their hands before they eat
- escort pupils to and from the dining area, as necessary
- ensure that pupils having a school lunch are in the dining hall at the correct time
- help younger pupils at the servery counter with the proper use of cutlery, and help them cut up their food when necessary
- assist pupils with the return of used plates, trays, cutlery and beakers, and with the cleaning of tables when lunch is finished
- encourage and support children to eat school or packed lunch
- supervise pupils eating food brought from home, and ensure that all packed-lunch equipment is cleared away after use
- maintain a quiet calm environment in the dinner hall
- report to the class teacher any child whose diet may give rise for concern
- supervise groups of children in the playground or the classroom, depending on the weather
- devise, initiate and facilitate constructive play opportunities for children when required
- ensure that children remain within a safe environment, and that they play safely
- ensure play equipment is suitable and safe and any defects are reported to team leader
- maintain and clean play equipment
- set suitable behaviour standards in line with school policy
- help children acquire social skills
- attend to minor accidents sustained during the midday break, and seek appropriate assistance if necessary; completing written reports in line with school policy
- attend to any pupil who becomes ill during the midday break, and again seek appropriate assistance
- report to safeguarding team any incidents and/or disclosures under the Child Protection legislation
- report to teaching staff any acts that constitute serious infringements of school rules
- liaise effectively and professionally with all staff members within school as required
- attend training, as required; this includes Child Protection, Active Playground, and any other appropriate training
- promote the school’s policy on equal opportunities and racist incidents
This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and therefore will be subject to a DBS check from the Disclosure and Barring Service.
Usworth Colliery Primary safeguards and protects its students and staff by being committed to respond in accordance with Sunderland Local Safeguarding Board procedures.
Salary: Grade: 1 (SCP 3) £18,887 (pro rata, term time only)
Closing Date: 29 September 2025, 9.00am
Interview Date: 2 October 2025
Other Information
Information to Candidates
Thank you for applying for a job with us.
This information is to help you to understand how our recruitment process works and how to best fill in your application form.
About the information you have received
A Job Description: Outlines the purpose of the job and the main duties involved.
A Person Specification: Lists the essential criteria an applicant needs to meet. It is this document that applicants are measured against during recruitment.
An Application Form: A standard form on which we collect information about you. We use this, instead of a C.V., to be more consistent.
Other information: You may have received other specific information about the job, and the stages of your recruitment process.
How our recruitment process works
A selection panel is formed, made up of at least two people, usually including the Headteacher or members of the Governing Body. Next, they agree the content of the Job Description and the essential criteria for the Person Specification. A job advert is then written.
Part A and Part B are separated. The Equal Opportunities Monitoring information is collected from Part A. Only Part B is given to the shortlisting panel. This panel does not see personal information about you. This is designed to reduce the chances of unfair discrimination. If you do not submit all parts of the application form you will not be able to be considered for the position.
Each panel member then compares the information on Part B of your Application Form with the criteria on the Person Specification. They each read all of the forms and then record their views. Next they discuss and agree who will go through to the next stage. If there are a lot of applicants who meet the requirements, the panel will consider the successful pile again, keeping only those who best meet the requirements.
References are then requested from referees you have provided in advance of the interview and may be referred to during the interview in line with Safer Recruitment practices. In relation to work with children we will seek information about any past disciplinary issues relating to children and/or child protection concerns you may have been subject to.
Shortlisted applicants for all posts are required to declare all criminal convictions whether “spent” or “unspent” and include any cautions and pending prosecution, with the exception of those spent convictions or cautions that are ‘protected’ (e.g. filtered). Shortlisted candidates will be asked to complete a self-declaration of their criminal record or information that would make them unsuitable to work with children. The purpose of a self-declaration is so that candidates will have the opportunity to share relevant information and allow this to be discussed and considered at interview before the DBS certificate is received.
** NEW - Keeping Children Safe in Education states the need for schools to conduct an “online search as part of their due diligence on the shortlisted candidates.” The purpose of the online check is to help identify any incidents or issues that have happened, and are publicly available online, which the school / setting might want to explore with the applicant at interview, to establish their suitability to work with children.
The online check forms one part of the school’s pre-employment checks process.
Shortlisted applicants may then have an interview or may be asked to take part in other selection activities, e.g. work tests, occupational tests etc. You will always be told about these activities in advance. For some vacancies, it may be appropriate for the selection process to include an appropriate activity with pupils. In such cases, pupils will be involved in the recruitment process in a meaningful way. Observing short listed candidates and appropriately supervised interaction with pupils/students is common and recognised as good practice.
In line with Safer Recruitment, the interview will be used to explore potential areas of concern to determine an applicant’s suitability to work with children. You will be asked questions relating to safeguarding children, e.g.:
- finding out what attracted you to the post being applied for and your motivation for working with children;
- exploring your skills and asking for examples of experience of working with children which are relevant to the role; and
- probing any gaps in employment or where you have changed employment or location frequently, asking about the reasons for this.
What do we value on Application Forms?
We are only looking for the things we have listed on the Person Specification. We strongly value the achievement of, and progress towards, academic, professional, and vocational qualifications.
We also believe, however, that there are extremely talented people in the jobs market. People who, for one reason or another, have not developed their skills and abilities through an academic route and gained a qualification. So, we also value other things such as previous job experience, research projects or personal study, work placements, voluntary work, social experience or personal life experience.
For some posts, a professional qualification is essential. In this case we will ask for the relevant qualification and you will be asked to provide certificates to verify your qualification.
How to best fill in your Application form
The panel are looking for those candidates who can give real examples of how they meet the essential criteria on the Person Specification. It is quality, not quantity that is important. We only want information on the application form. C.V.’s will not be considered.
Here are some helpful hints when completing the form, and remember to have the Person Specification at hand throughout:
· Use a spare sheet of paper to make notes first.
· Prepare answers to all questions but leave the ‘How you meet the essential requirements’ until last. Most candidates find this the hardest part to complete.
· If a box is not relevant to your personal circumstances, mark it ‘not applicable’.
· Give details of your employment history. If you have a gap in your employment, you are required to give an explanation for this.
· Give details of any referees who we can ask for information about you. One should be your current or most recent employer. If you are not currently working with children but have done so in the past, the second referee should be the employer by whom you were most recently employed in work with children. If you are unemployed, you must give details of a previous employer. If you have never been employed, please give details of a school, college or university tutor, or put a line through the box. References will not be accepted from relatives, or persons who only know you as a friend. We reserve the right to seek additional references.
Now focus on the ‘How you meet the essential requirements’. Take each of the criteria on the Person Specification in turn. Take time to think about all of your previous experience and give examples of where you have best displayed the things that are asked for. Simply stating that you have each requirement will not be considered as suitable evidence and may disadvantage you at the short-listing stage. Remember you can use examples from your work life, study, personal life, voluntary work, social experience, vocational training etc. Answer the points in the same order as on the Person Specification. You can present this as a list and use numbering if you wish. Remember – Quality over Quantity.
How we acknowledge receipt of your Application Form
We do not write back to every candidate who submits an Application Form to us. The information pack will outline how and when you will be informed. We will give you a Fair and Equal Opportunity to work for us. We are fully committed to providing a fair recruitment process for all. To do this, we need to know if you feel anything may prevent you from demonstrating your full potential. We will make any reasonable adjustments or arrangement to any part of the recruitment process.
Equal Opportunities
We are committed to equal opportunity in employment and will treat people fairly regardless of age, disability, gender, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief and sexual orientation. This means that we will not unfairly discriminate against a candidate. Applicants are encouraged to include requests for reasonable adjustments on their application form or to tell us at any stage during the process. Whenever this happens we must make every effort to make adjustments as far as reasonably possible. Reasonable adjustments can include providing documents in other formats, accepting applications in other formats, allowing people extra time to complete applications or to take tests at interview, providing a support worker or other aid at interviews and tests, providing communication support and ensuring the interview venue is accessible.
Complaints about the Recruitment Process
If you feel you have been treated unfairly or are unhappy with any part of the recruitment process, we want to know about it! You can make a complaint by contacting the headteacher/school office and explain that you wish to make a complaint. Please see your Application Pack for contact details.
Data Protection
The information you provide on the application form will be used to assess your suitability for the post and will be viewed only by those involved in the recruitment process. If you are appointed, the information will be used to create your employment record. If you are not appointed, it will be destroyed after 8 months, except in the event of a dispute. Personal information that you provide in the ‘Equal Opportunities Monitoring’ section of the form will only be used for the purpose of equal opportunities monitoring and statistical analysis. This helps us to continually improve our equal opportunities policies and practices. By submitting this form, you are consenting to the recording and use of the information for the purposes mentioned above.
Any other questions
If you have any questions or comments about any aspect of the recruitment process, please contact the headteacher/school office as directed by the appropriate advertisement/information in your application pack.