Surrey County Council
Location
Surrey | United Kingdom
Job description
The starting salary for this position is £50,047 per annum, based on a 36-hour working week.
Surrey County Council's approach to hybrid working is flexible, but the demands of the SEND Service mean that our preference is for all SEND Service staff to work in their offices for a minimum of two days a week. In support of our people and our greener futures strategies, we'd welcome a conversation with the successful candidate on what hybrid working may look like for you.
If you are passionate about achieving the best outcomes for children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and you are committed to ensuring we offer the best service we can, we have a great opportunity for you!
We are looking for a highly motivated and capable Area SEND Manager to join us and support the South East SEND team to effectively and efficiently deliver the local authority's statutory responsibilities of the national SEND framework.
Rewards and Benefits
26 days' holiday (prorated for part time staff), rising to 28 days after 2 years' service and 30 days after 5 years' service
Option to buy up to 10 days of additional annual leave
An extensive Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support health and wellbeing
Up to 5 days of carer's leave per year
Paternity, adoption and dependants leave
A generous local government salary related pension
Lifestyle discounts including gym, travel, shopping and many more
2 paid volunteering days plus 1 team volunteering day per year
Learning and development hub where you can access a wealth of resources
About the Team
At Surrey we are committed to ensuring that all children and young people with SEND receive an outstanding service and we are on our journey towards offering this. We encourage our SEND and Inclusion Services to work closely and collaboratively together in affecting timely and purposeful casework that ensures the best possible outcomes for vulnerable children and young people. Relational and restorative working practices will underpin all our practice with stakeholders, partners, clients and customers.
About the Role
Day to day, the Area SEND Manager has overall responsibility for managing a busy quadrant SEND team and ensuring timely and high quality SEND casework is consistently delivered. The role requires you to draw on a deep knowledge of SEND and related legislation, and your proven management practice skills, to ensure that the team can consistently deliver time-bound statutory assessments as well as draft high quality and legally compliant Education, Health & Care Plans. You will also ensure that your team can secure special educational provision and appropriate education placement, manage annual reviews and administer and advise on a range of complex SEND casework.
You will use your highly developed interpersonal skills to build professional and productive relationships with colleagues, partners and stakeholders, such as school leaders and families. You will have the resilience to work positively and in solution-focused ways with families who may be experiencing anxiety or frustration about their children's circumstances. You will model these professional behaviours to your team and set and maintain high standards of customer care.
As our Area SEN Manager you will be involved in the following key areas of responsibility:
All statutory aspects of Education, Health & Care Needs Assessments; EHCP writing; Annual Review management; securing special educational provision and placements
Providing advice and unblocking complex casework through solution-focused approaches
Attending the Education Governance Board and contributing to statutory decision making
Monitoring and managing budgets in accordance with financial procedures
Using performance data to report progress, forecast demand and drive forward improvements
To be considered for shortlisting, your CV and personal statement will need to clearly evidence the following:
A professional qualification and relevant registration with post qualification practical experience or substantial relevant and practical experience in administering the statutory SEND framework or closely related work
An ability to apply critical analysis and exercise evaluative judgement appropriately
Proven written and verbal communication skills, with good negotiation and influencing skills, as well as the ability to work collaboratively
Competence in a range of IT tools including MS Office and database management systems
High-level problem-solving skills with the capacity to devise and implement innovative solutions
Demonstrable experience in successful recruitment, management, coaching and development of staff
The role involves working in and visiting venues across the locality, such as education settings, to build professional working relationships.
The job advert closes at 23:59 on 22nd March 2024 with interviews to follow.
An enhanced DBS 'Disclosure and Barring Service' check for regulated activity (formerly known as CRB) and the Children's and Adults' Barred List checks will be required for this role.
We look forward to receiving your application, please click on the apply online button below to submit.
Our Commitment
Surrey County Council is proud to be a Disability Confident Employer. A guaranteed interview will be offered to all disabled applications where:
The candidate has evidenced the minimum criteria for the role through their application
The candidate has chosen to share that they have a disability on the application form
Our application form and onboarding process will provide an opportunity to request any reasonable adjustments for the interview and/or the role.We want to be an inclusive and diverse employer reflecting the community we serve and particularly welcome applications from all underrepresented groups.
Job tags
Salary
£50.05k - £55.13k per annum
