ABSTRACT
This chapter explains the management of effective support. It examines the special educational needs coordinator's (SENCo) role and responsibilities in managing teaching assistants (TAs) and monitoring additional provision. The chapter uses the term TAs to include learning support assistants and other assistants who support pupils with special educational needs and disability (SEND). In recent years, the management of support systems has become a central responsibility for SENCos and senior staff. Recent extensive and rigorous research was undertaken on the deployment and impact of support staff (DISS). Many schools nationally are aiming to maximise the impact of TAs on pupil progress and using practical advice born of research. The responsibility for effective support lies with school leaders implementing whole-school policies on the deployment, training and practice of TAs and on monitoring the impact of such policies on teaching and on pupil progress. Most commonly, teachers and TAs work together, sometimes alternating their teaching roles with different pupils.
