Benefits overview
Achieving a nationally recognised qualification specifically tailored to their needs enables support staff to:
- enhance their knowledge and skills
- be more effective in their current roles
- be more willing and able to take on new and different tasks
- recognise their contribution in school
- demonstrate their value to other staff, and
- make a more effective contribution to the life of the school.
Developing the skills of support staff helps you manage change positively and maximise their impact and contribution to whole school improvement.
For school leaders, SWiS can:
- improve the skills of staff so they are able to contribute more effectively to better outcomes for children
- provide a useful tool in supporting the development of support staff
- enable staff to work within, and contribute to, the school’s policies and practices
- support schools in taking a coherent whole school approach to workforce development and reform, including helping support staff meet the requirements of the Common Core of Skills and Knowledge for the Children’s Workforce and implementing extended school services, and
- enable support staff to perform their role more effectively.
For support staff, SWiS can:
- build confidence, enabling them to do their job better and take greater responsibility if required
- develop their knowledge and career through flexible training, which is tailored to their needs
- show them they are valued and make an important contribution to their school
- show other members of staff the valuable role they play in the school, and
- provide a stepping-stone to further qualifications such as national vocational qualifications.
