The incident happened on Percy Street, Hanley, after a police officer recognised a man wanted for theft.
The PCSO suffered a head injury and was taken to Royal Stoke University Hospital.
The force said an officer was also assaulted but did not require hospital treatment. A 27-year-old man was arrested after the incident.
A PCSO has been hospitalised after he was assaulted by a man resisting arrest, Staffordshire Police has said.