Research and analysis

Use of teaching assistants in schools

Research about the use of teaching assistants (TAs) in state-funded primary, secondary and special schools in England.

• From: Department for Education
• Published: 27 September 2024

Applies to England

Documents

Use of teaching assistants in schools: research report

Ref: ISBN 978-1-83870-578-7, RR1421

PDF, 536 KB, 77 pages

Use of teaching assistants in schools: school leader survey

MS Excel Spreadsheet, 221 KB

Use of teaching assistants in schools: teaching assistants survey

MS Excel Spreadsheet, 941 KB

Details

This research aimed to understand how different schools use teaching assistants and examined:

• school approaches to deployment
• barriers and enablers to effective deployment
• perceptions on the impact of teaching assistants
• roles and responsibilities of teaching assistants
• motivations for becoming a teaching assistant

The report includes findings from:

• surveys with a representative sample of schools and teaching assistants in England
• interviews with 63 teaching assistants and 34 school leaders
• focus groups with 41 teachers

Published 27 September 2024