Teaching assistant honoured in national awards celebration

A local teaching assistant from Ninestiles, An Academy, part of the Summit Learning Trust, has gained national recognition by being named as a finalist in the Pearson National Teaching Awards.

Sharfa Chohan has been awarded a Silver Award in the TA of the Year category.

Sharfa, who has only been in the role for a year, has made a huge impact on the whole Ninestiles community.

She has played a key part in welcoming the current Year 7 group and helped to improve communication and connection with local parents.

She has even delivered child-centred reviews at their own home in their family’s home language, ensuring the experience is both accessible and successful.

Nominees for the TA of the Year had to demonstrate how they help children learn and thrive and how they have helped learners achieve their academic and personal goals against all odds.

The Pearson National Teaching Awards were founded in 1998 by Lord Puttnam to recognise the life-changing impact schools can have on the lives of the young people they work with.

The Silver Award winners are being honoured as part of the wider celebrations for ‘Thank a Teacher Day’, a national campaign to honour and recognise school staff for their incredible work.

Ms Chohan has now been shortlisted to win one of Pearson’s Gold Awards; Gold winners will be announced in November and will be invited to appear on the BBC’s The One Show.

Alex Hughes, principal at Ninestiles, An Academy said: “Everyone at Ninestiles is so proud of Sharfa, it’s brilliant to see the amazing work she has done to support our students and their families recognised at a national level.

“I want to say a huge thank you to Sharfa, and all the staff in the Ninestiles family, this Thank a Teacher Day, every day that they come to work they make a real difference to the lives of the children of Birmingham.”