School Cover Supervisor Employment Contract UK

Responsibilities reflected in the contract

• Supervise classes using work set by teachers.
• Explain instructions without replacing subject teaching.
• Maintain attendance behaviour and safeguarding routines.
• Collect completed work and note class progress.
• Escalate incidents unmet needs and missing plans.

A realistic working scenario

You supervise a classroom following a teacher's lesson plan, record attendance and progress on the learning platform, complete handovers at change of cover, and escalate safeguarding disclosures, missed handovers or inspection queries to the practice or department manager.

Outputs to agree

• Supervised lessons delivered to the teacher's lesson or activity plan, with any deviations logged.
• Completed attendance registers and progress notes entered into the assessment records or learning platform after each lesson.
• Cover supervisor quality check: completed handover checklist and submitted to the practice or department manager.
• Safeguarding concern report submitted to the practice or department manager using safeguarding records system.
• Parent communication log entry where authorised communications occur, recorded in pupil records.

Records and evidence

• Lesson handover checklist completed at start/end of cover duty.
• Attendance register and late/absence notes entered in attendance and progress records.
• Progress notes against planned activities recorded in the learning platform.
• Safeguarding incident log entry in safeguarding records when disclosures occur.
• Parent communication entries in pupil records when authorised to contact families.
• Work records.

Reporting relationship

Typically reports to Senior Manager, Director or Business Owner. Confirm the employer's actual reporting structure in the builder.

Authority and escalation

• You may supervise classes and update attendance, progress and handover records. Escalate safeguarding disclosures, missed handovers, inspection queries or behaviour incidents to the practice or department manager for decision, remediation or formal reporting. Do not amend assessment outcomes or admissions records without manager approval.
• May allocate routine work and make operational decisions only within documented staffing, financial, contractual and policy limits.

Supervision

• Supervise classes using work set by teachers.
• Allocate and review assigned work within delegated authority and escalate formal people matters through the Employer's procedures.

Tools and systems

• Learning platforms.
• Assessment records.
• Classroom equipment.

Workplace context

• School, college or other agreed education premises and authorised off-site educational activities.

Training and certification

• Complete employer-required safeguarding training.

Contract priorities

• Follow and record work against teacher lesson or activity plans.
• Keep attendance and progress records accurate in the learning platform.
• Complete handover checklists and cover supervisor quality checks each shift.
• Report safeguarding disclosures and inspection-related requests to the practice or department manager.
• Use classroom equipment and assessment records only for authorised cover duties.

Information the employer should prepare

• the phases subjects and class groups
• the expected frequency and timetable of cover
• the lesson-plan and resource arrangements
• the behaviour removal and emergency routes
• the duties training and reporting line