Pupil Support Worker - Dunbar Primary School

Vacancy Information

The salary advertised is full time (35 hours per week, 52 weeks per year). Part-time hours / sessional posts will be pro-rated accordingly.

Hourly rate of pay: £16.70 - £17.84
This is a 39-week sessional post i.e., working hours will be during school term time plus in-service days.

Temporary until 30th June 2027.
Days and Hours of Work:
Monday - Thursday, 08:45-15:00
To start asap.

The Pupil Support Worker at Dunbar Primary plays a key role in promoting the wellbeing, inclusion and engagement of children and families across the school community.

They work closely with pupils, families, teaching staff, Senior Leadership Team and external partners and provide targeted support to remove barriers to learning and ensure that every child feels safe, supported and heard.

The role includes delivering a range of evidence-informed interventions and support groups, including Circle of Friends, Lego Therapy, anxiety management, bereavement support and Seasons for Growth programmes. The post holder provides one-to-one support for children experiencing social, emotional or wellbeing challenges and contributes to the development of positive relationships throughout the school.

A significant aspect of the role involves supporting attendance, particularly for children with attendance below agreed thresholds. This includes monitoring attendance, communicating with families through letters and telephone calls, undertaking home visits where appropriate, and working collaboratively with parents and carers to address barriers to school attendance.

The Pupil Support Worker acts as a key link between home and school, providing practical and emotional support to families. This may include facilitating parental learning programmes, such as Raising Kids/Teens with Confidence, leading coffee mornings, signposting families to relevant services, and supporting parents with applications and paperwork, including Free School Meal entitlement and other forms of assistance.

The post holder works proactively with families experiencing socio-economic disadvantage and supports children and families through key transition periods, including moves to secondary school or other educational settings. They contribute to Child Planning Meetings and multi-agency discussions, ensuring that the views and needs of children and families are represented effectively.

In addition, the role supports wider school operations through participation in on-call duties, supervision responsibilities, school residential experiences, and attendance at relevant training. Ideally, the post holder would be trained in First Aid.

Through all aspects of the role, the Pupil Support Worker contributes to creating a nurturing, inclusive and supportive school environment where children and families can thrive.

We will consider a accepting a secondment to this post. Please ensure you have discussed this with your line manager before applying.

INTERNAL APPLICANTS ONLY / SECONDMENT OPPORTUNITY
Applications for this post will only be accepted from current employees of East Lothian Council (this includes casual and agency staff who are currently undertaking work for us). Any current employee wishing to apply for this temporary post as a secondment should discuss it with their current line manager in the first instance.

Job Details

As part of the Pupil Support Team, provide support to primary aged pupils (including Pupil Support Base) with a range of social emotional and behavioural difficulties in accordance with agreed aims, objectives and standards.

Please download the Job Outline/Person Specification (available under 'Job Attachments') for the full range of tasks and duties associated with this job. You will need to refer to these in order to complete the application form. You must ensure you meet every 'essential' criteria stated on the Person Specification to be considered for interview.

The ‘East Lothian Way’– values and behaviours we expect our employees to demonstrate in their everyday work. Should you be invited to interview, you may be asked questions based on these behaviours. Please refer to the document via the link to familiarise yourself with them.

Job Requirements

Relevant Qualifications
A minimum of SVQ1/Standard Grade General level English/Maths or National 4 English/Maths or Literacy/Numeracy or Intermediate 1 Communication/Numeracy and/or able to demonstrate equivalent knowledge, skills and competencies gained through relevant experience.

PVG Membership
This post is considered as a Regulated Role with vulnerable children and/or protected adults, as specified in the Disclosure (Scotland) Act 2020.

All preferred candidates for posts carrying out regulated work with these groups will be required to become a PVG Scheme member, or undergo a PVG Scheme update if they are already a member, prior to any formal offer of employment being made by East Lothian Council.

Please note: PVG member’s records are constantly updated with any new vetting information that arises. Any information that is disclosed on a PVG membership or update check, if relevant to the post being applied for, will be discussed with the applicant and investigated prior to any formal offer being made.

Please note:
If you have spent more than 3 months working or living out with the UK in the last 5 years then you will be required to present a copy of an overseas criminal record check. Details of how to apply and contact details can be found on the GOV.UK website.

Additional Information

For additional East Lothian Council employment information please click on the following link:
www.eastlothian.gov.uk/nonteachinginfo

If you have any difficulties creating an account on MyJobScotland or applying for this post please contact the MyJobScotland support team via this link https://www.myjobscotland.gov.uk/contact-us.

If you require further information about this vacancy, please call 01620 827868, or email us on recruitment@eastlothian.gov.uk

Please note: We do not accept CV's (either electronically or by mail). All our vacancies must be applied for by fully completing the on-line application form. Although there is an ‘import data from my CV’ function on MyJobScotland, this only imports very limited data and should not be relied upon to complete the application form. If, for example, due to a disability, you are unable to complete the on-line application form you can contact us for a paper application via the telephone number or email address above.