The Government expects that there will be around 20,000 teaching assistants trained as HLTAs every year by 2006/07. It sees their role as vital to its strategy to reduce teachers' workloads.
However, there are no plans for salary increases nationally to reflect their increased responsibilities. A spokesman for the Department for Education and Skills said it was the department's view that pay and conditions for support staff should be determined locally and that there were currently no plans to change this.
Local education authorities will select support staff already working in their schools to take part in the HLTA programme. In order to achieve HLTA status, individuals will be measured in a set of 31 national standards.
Initially there will be two training routes - assessment-only, for those support staff already working at or near the standards required, or a longer 50-day training programme.
The successful candidates from 300 who took part in a pilot programme run by 11 providers received notification earlier this month of their new HLTA status.
The Teacher Training Agency has named 36 training providers. They include Manchester Metropolitan University, Devon Teaching Assistants Partnership, Newham Local Education Authority and Canterbury Christchurch University College.
Some of the training providers will offer the assessment-only route from this month, with all of them offering both the assessment-only route and the training programme from September.
Jill Staley, co-director of teacher training strategy for the Teacher Training Agency, said, 'The selection of these first approved training providers is a key development in the Government's initiative to reform the school workforce. The HTLAs will be vital in helping teachers to have time to offer personalised learning for each of their pupils.'
Ms Staley said providers were chosen for their experience in high-quality training and assessment.
* See Special Report, p10
