Communication Support Worker

The Role

We are outstanding, you can be too.

Do you have a passion for providing communication support to learners, including supporting communication between spoken English and BSL in order to support the delivery of educational, care, therapy and well-being provision?

Working as a Communication Support Worker at Portland means that you will provide crucial support to both the learners and teaching staff here at the college, adapting learning and teaching materials to encourage a learner’s journey.

Not only will you support learners and teachers, you will also co-deliver deaf awareness training and assist the student recruitment process through communication support for potential new learners joining the college.

You can see more about what we do at Portland Charity by looking at the Who We Are and Choose Your Future pages on our website https://www.portland.ac.uk/

Working at Portland Charity

At Portland Charity our learners, citizens and staff are at the heart of what we do, we are passionate about our vision that all people with disabilities will have a lifetime of opportunity and you could help us to achieve that. Our priority for staff is to create an outstanding place to work where the rewards of a job well done can be seen in the faces of our learners and citizens.

There are lots of great benefits to working at Portland Charity

·        a rewarding career and working towards positive outcomes for our learners and citizens

·        enhanced holidays of 33 days per year when you join us (pro rata) and you are able to buy up to 10 additional days of holiday

·        you are eligible for a Blue Light Card with access to lots of great discounts

·        free and confidential access to an Employee Assistance Programme

·        free parking on site and access to a subsidised canteen with a variety of meal options

·        everyone has an opportunity to develop their knowledge and skills on the job through training, mentoring and qualifications!

We are committed to promoting equality, challenging discrimination and developing community cohesion. We welcome applications from all sections the community.

Qualifications needed

-      You will hold an accurate British Sign Language skill, minimum level 2

-      To support your knowledge, you will have an appropriate qualification in Learning Support e.g. Level 2 Certificate in Learning Support or equivalent qualification, or a willingness to work towards within an agreed timescale

-      Alongside the two above qualifications, you will be in possession of Maths and English functional skills at level 2 or GCSE grad C or a willingness to work towards within an agreed timescale

Working Hours

Your working hours will be Monday – Thursday, 9am-4:30pm, in order to support our learners through their learning journeys. This pattern will consist of 28 hours per week, 38 weeks of the year.

Completing your application

There are some other important things you need to know before you apply to work with us at Portland Charity.

Successful applicants will be required to undertake an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check, an overseas check where applicable and provide proof of their right to work in the UK. 

Please note – We need you to complete an application form to fulfil our Safer Recruitment responsibilities but you can submit a CV and we will consider it alongside your application form.

In order to apply for this role, you will need to create a profile on our online recruitment portal, Face-Ed.

Please click on the “apply” button and this will take you to the link to create a profile.

You will need to ensure you complete ALL sections of your profile before you can submit your application.

If you have any questions or need some help when completing your application you can contact work@portland.ac.uk or call the Recruitment team on 01623 499111, extension 428 or 283 and we will be happy to help.



Many of our staff have a disability and we’re proud to hold Disability Confident and Mindful Employer status which recognises our positive approach to physical and mental health and wellbeing at work. If you would like to speak with us before completing an application you can contact our Recruitment team on 01623 499 111 or via email at work@portland.ac.uk who will be happy to support you with your application or answer any questions. 

Qualifications