Ofsted rated: Good

How to Become a Pastoral Support Officer

The Role of a Pastoral Support Officer

The role of the Pastoral Support Officer involves setting appropriate boundaries for students who have additional behavioural needs, and may exhibit complex barriers to learning. As a result of your strength of practice you will support other staff in their development in these areas.

Providing care to pupils, ensuring their safety and dealing with any problems the pupils may have
Liaising with other staff members, parents/guardians and professionals
Prepare letters and paperwork when needed
Following GDPR & Safeguarding protocol
Resilient and instinctive approach in meeting students’ needs
Use behaviour management strategies effectively and be able to work using your own initiative while following policies and procedures
High level of flexibility and will welcome the opportunity to work in different settings with different approaches to engage learners

Pastoral Support Officer Skills & Requirements

You can start a career as a Pastoral Support Officer by obtaining a relevant qualification such as a Level 2 SEN Teaching Assistant. Each course, qualification and provider will have their own entry requirements for these courses. If you’d like to know what the requirements are for our SEN Teaching Assistant course then click here.

Excellent communication and listening
Ability to remain calm
Ability to work well under pressure
Ability to be able to build relationships
Be able to support students with their problems
Sensitivity and understanding

Pastoral Support Officer Salary

The average pastoral support officer salary in the United Kingdom is £23,609 per year or £12.11 per hour.

Entry level positions start at £21,364 per year while most experienced workers make up to £27,899 per year.

Pastoral Support Officer Working Hours

As a Pastoral Support Officer, you will normally work 37-40 hours a week plus term time.

Pastoral Support Officers will often benefit from school holidays.

April - Mid July

The summer term stretches from the end of the Easter break to mid-July.

It includes a half term week long holiday in late May.

This is usually the busiest time, with later students sitting their GCSE’s.

September - December

The academic school year starts in early September, with the term stretching till Christmas. The winter term is a half term holiday, usually a week long at the end of October. Most schools have a 2 week end of term holiday stretching over New Year and Christmas.

January - March/April

This is the spring term and stretches from early January to Easter. Easter usually falls on a different weekend each year, so the end of term two-week break can be either early April or late March. This term also included a week-long half term break, usually in mid-February.

Pastoral Support Officer Career Progression

If you’re looking to earn a higher salary as a Pastoral Support Officer then you should look into acquiring additional skills and knowledge that will be useful in the job. Having the right supporting qualifications is going to help you to be considered for higher level positions or a better paying job in a new workplace.

Having a qualification in safeguarding is useful in any setting where you’ll be working with children or vulnerable people. You could also look at a course in understanding autism or getting your first aid qualification. With supporting qualifications you will be seen as a more valuable potential employee and will be more likely to get those higher paying jobs, as well as being considered for higher level positions as you progress.

You could also train for a career in social services, the probation service, youth work or education welfare.