As part of National Apprenticeship Week 2024, we are delighted to share some of our apprentice progression stories.
Paige Cosgrove is a SEN Teaching Assistant at Thomas Bewick School, specialist provision for autistic children and young people based in Newcastle upon Tyne.
Her apprenticeship was delivered by Inspire ATA, a flexi-job apprenticeship agency that employs and supports apprentices across the UK.
Paige had worked with children with Special Educational Needs (SEN) before and found it very rewarding. She was keen to start a Teaching Assistant apprenticeship in her local area as we wanted to be able to support children and young people on their journey.
Paige said:
I decided to choose an apprenticeship as I wanted to learn and earn at the same time. I had previously worked within SEN and wanted to support more children in my area. Learning all the skills and knowledge on the job is a key benefit of doing an apprenticeship."
I have received lots of support throughout my apprenticeship and enjoy my monthly check-ins with Inspire ATA. The team at Thomas Bewick has been very supportive in helping me to achieve my goals. My mentor, Robyn is always asking what support I need, and I appreciate this.
Throughout my apprenticeship, I have been able to build my confidence. Previously I did have a lack of confidence and didn’t like leading whereas now I love taking the lead and feel more confident doing so.
The most enjoyable part of my apprenticeship was getting to know the children and their needs and how to help them progress and learn while seeing them come out of their shells.
Paige has now completed her apprenticeship and has been offered a full-time role as a Teaching Assistant at Thomas Bewick School. She would like to progress on the HLTA qualification to improve her skills even further in the SEN field.
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