MEP visits teaching assistants

TdaNews Direct
Published: 19 November, 2007

Teaching assistants training at the Harlow Study Centre have been visited by a local MEP it has been reported.

Around 20 of the women at the centre in Nettleswellbury Farm, who were visited by MEP Richard Howitt, are eight weeks through their 16-week-long teaching assistant NVQ qualifications.

Mr Howitt, an Essex MEP, visited the centre to take a look at the scheme which began in April and is co-funded by the European Social Fund project, called Pathways to School Employment, and the Learning and Skills Council.

He told the Harlow Herald: "These teaching assistants will help hundreds of children in Harlow to read and discover the joy of reading for themselves. It's great to see how committed they are to making this happen."

During his visit, those studying for the teaching qualification explained to the MEP what had drawn them to the profession.

Gill Manitara was one of the women who explained her career choice.

The paper reports she said: "Teaching is something I've always been interested in. At the moment I'm working part-time in London and not getting home till 8pm, which is not ideal.

"It's nice to do something you can enjoy and I can spend more time with my children."