SEMH Practitioner (a pastoral role)
New Meaning Centre: NMT Enrichment Centre, Aylesbury
Employer: New Meaning Training (NMT)
Type: Permanent, Full Time, All-year-round
Hours: 37.5 hours per week
Schedule: Monday to Friday 08:30 – 16:30
Job ref: BUCAYSP072601
Introduction
Do you want to be the person who helps a young person feel safe enough to try again?
We’re looking for a SEMH Practitioner to join our team at our Enrichment Centre in Aylesbury. This is a full-time, pastoral role where your presence, consistency and care will make a real difference every single day.
At New Meaning Training, we work with young people who’ve often had a difficult experience of education. Many have social, emotional and mental health needs, and need something different — more understanding, more patience, and more belief in what they’re capable of. As our centre continues to grow, we’re strengthening our SEMH and pastoral support so every learner can access the right support at the right time. In this role, you’ll support learners with moderate SEMH needs through a mix of 1:1 and small group interventions. You’ll work closely with the SEMH Lead and tutors to deliver strategies linked to EHCPs, helping young people regulate emotions, build confidence, and re-engage with learning.
This isn’t just about support in the moment — it’s about helping each young person feel valued, understood and able to move forward.
Key Responsibilities
· Deliver 1:1 and small group SEMH interventions, including those linked to EHCP outcomes
· Build consistent, supportive relationships with learners who may find engagement or trust difficult
· Apply trauma-informed approaches as part of our Loving Care Approach, modelling calm and empathetic behaviour
· Support learners to develop emotional regulation, confidence and positive behaviours for learning
· Work alongside tutors to adapt learning approaches so pastoral needs are understood and supported in the classroom
· Help staff implement EHCP strategies consistently across the learner’s timetable
· Respond to dysregulation using de-escalation strategies and agreed approaches
· Maintain accurate, up-to-date records of interventions, attendance and progress
· Manage your own timetable of learner support and communicate outcomes clearly with the SEMH Lead
· Promote understanding of SEMH across the team through informal coaching and collaboration
· Be visible and present during key parts of the day, supporting learners at arrival, transitions and departure
· Follow safeguarding procedures at all times, contributing to a safe and supportive environment
· Take part in CPD, training and supervision, and actively engage with internal systems and processes
You will have:
· Experience supporting young people with SEMH or pastoral needs in an education, youth, or alternative provision setting
· A good understanding of trauma-informed practice, emotional regulation, and social skills development
· The ability to build trust with learners who may have experienced challenges with behaviour, engagement, or relationships
· Strong communication skills and a proactive, team-focused approach to working with others
· A calm, compassionate presence — especially in moments where learners feel overwhelmed or dysregulated
· Good organisation and the ability to maintain clear, accurate records of interventions and progress
· A commitment to your own development, including engaging with CPD, coaching, and supervision
· An understanding of safeguarding responsibilities and a willingness to follow all policies and procedures (enhanced DBS required)
· A full UK driving licence and access to a business-insured vehicle as you may be required to work from one of other Buckinghamshire centres from time-to-time.
About us
New Meaning Training offers education with a difference. We work with young people aged 15–25 who haven’t always had a straightforward experience of education. Some have been misunderstood, some have disengaged, and some are still working out where they fit. What they find here is something steadier — a place where there’s time to settle in, where expectations are clear, and where they’re not judged on what’s gone before.
We now operate across six centres in High Wycombe (our HQ), Milton Keynes, Aylesbury, Reading, Stratford-upon-Avon and Nuneaton, supporting around 320 learners in the 2026–2027 academic year. Across all centres, we offer a growing range of “Introduction to” programmes designed to give young people a proper chance to try things out, build practical skills, and start to see what might come next. Everything is grounded in learning through doing — making education feel possible again from the start.
Our Aylesbury Enrichment Centre has its own feel. It’s a smaller, community-rooted site where relationships really matter and where learners are known well. The setting allows for a more personalised approach — taking the time to understand each young person properly, and adjusting the day so they can engage in a way that works for them.
There’s also something new building here. From September, our on-site café will become part of everyday learning — a real working environment where learners can build confidence, develop workplace skills, and experience the rhythm and expectations of employment in a supported way. It’s not a simulation; it’s something tangible they can be part of.
Across all of our centres, teams are close-knit, practical and supportive — people step in for each other, share ideas, and keep things moving on the days that don’t go to plan (which happens). There’s a shared understanding that progress isn’t always linear, and that consistency matters more than quick wins.
Alongside our centre-based provision, we run a Transition Support programme for young people with an EHCP who are not yet ready for that environment. This sits separately from our main delivery and is designed to help them move towards their next step at a pace that works for them.
Most of the young people we work with are referred through schools, PRUs and SEND services. That means we’re always balancing two things — creating an experience where young people feel understood, while also delivering something clear, structured and trusted by the professionals around them. We don’t expect things to change overnight. We focus on helping things feel possible again — and building from there.
Why work for New Meaning Training?
Generous annual leave
- 20 days annual leave, plus bank holidays
- Up to 10 additional “gifted” days off each year (taken during school holiday periods)
- Annual leave increases with length of service, up to a maximum of 24 days
Pension
- Auto enrolment into The People’s Pension
- 5% employee contribution with 3% employer contribution
Blue Light Card
- Access to hundreds of national discounts (retail, food, travel, days out)
- Admin fee fully reimbursed by NMT
Service recognition
- Additional annual leave as a thank you for long service
- Gift rewards at key milestones (e.g. 5 and 10 years)
Wellbeing benefits
- Annual flu vaccination voucher (paid for by NMT)
- Birthday gift voucher to celebrate your day
Sustainable travel schemes
- Cycle to Work scheme (salary sacrifice)
- Electric Vehicle scheme via Octopus Energy (salary sacrifice)
- Green Travel to Work initiatives with rewards for taking part
A supportive, values-led workplace
- Strong focus on staff wellbeing, development, and collaboration
- Training and CPD supported as part of your role
- The opportunity to make a meaningful difference in young people’s lives
Safeguarding
New Meaning Training is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. We expect all staff to share this commitment and adhere to our safeguarding and professional conduct policies.
- Checks: This post involves regulated activity and is subject to an Enhanced DBS check (including a Children’s Barred List check) and satisfactory professional references.
- Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (ROA): This role is exempt from the ROA 1974. Applicants must disclose all convictions and cautions that are not ‘protected’ under the Exceptions Order 1975 (as amended 2013 and 2020). For guidance on which offences are ‘filtered’ and do not need to be disclosed, please refer to the DBS filtering guide.
Job Types: Full-time, Permanent
Pay: £24,246.00-£40,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- Additional leave
- Company events
- Company pension
- Cycle to work scheme
- Sick pay
Experience:
- supporting young people with SEMH or pastoral needs : 1 year (required)
Work Location: In person
