New guidelines to give teaching assistants a fair deal

School support staff will soon benefit from a raft of new guidelines due to be introduced next month.

Introduced to ensure that a good deal for teaching assistants is achieved, the regulation includes provisions about a fair wage and teaching hours, reports the Times Educational Supplement.

It is expected that the Teacher and Development Agency for Schools will enforce the guidance with the support of the government.

Provisions included will be making sure that assistants are only enlisted to do tasks for which they are qualified, as well as a guideline that they must not be forced to work beyond their contracts on unpaid overtime.

Schools must "ensure that support staff receive fair and consistent pay and conditions appropriate to the overall role and responsibilities they undertake", the document states.

This follows a number of teaching assistants striking in a dispute over pay last month, with other members of Unison.