Job Introduction
About Us
Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust and Oxfordshire County Council are transforming support for children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND). We are building a team of health and education professionals (Experts at Hand) to provide earlier intervention and stronger inclusion in schools settings, providing practical support where it is needed, and helping children and young people receive the right support, at the right time. By sharing your expertise and working collaboratively with colleagues across organisations, you'll play a key role in improving outcomes for children, families, and schools across Oxfordshire.
As part of our Experts at Hand programme, you'll join a growing community of SEND leaders and specialists who are helping to reshape how support is delivered across Oxfordshire. Working across education, health and wider SEND services, we are creating a more connected and responsive system that enables schools and settings to access expertise earlier, strengthen inclusive practice and improve outcomes for children and young people.
The SEND Strategic Early Intervention Team plays a central role in delivering Oxfordshire's SEND Reform Plan. Through the Universal Offer, SENDCO Helpdesk, single point of access and multi-disciplinary triage arrangements, we are ensuring that support is coordinated, evidence-informed and focused on getting the right help to children and young people at the right time.
About the Role
As Senior Specialist SENDCO, you will provide both strategic and operational leadership for Oxfordshire's Universal Offer and Experts at Hand arrangements. This is an influential role where you will help shape the way schools, settings and families access support, whilst ensuring that services work together effectively to meet the needs of children and young people with SEND.
You will lead and support a team of Specialist SENDCOs, creating a culture of high-quality, consistent and child-centred practice. Through professional leadership, supervision and coaching, you'll help your team deliver effective support to schools and settings, strengthening inclusion and helping educational professionals feel more confident in meeting the needs of children and young people with SEND.
A key part of the role involves supporting oversight of the SENDCO Helpdesk, the single point of access for Experts at Hand and the county's triage arrangements. You will ensure that requests for support are reviewed consistently, prioritised effectively and progressed through a clear pathway, helping children and young people receive timely, proportionate and needs-led support.
You will work closely with colleagues across education, health, attendance, SEND services and wider multi-disciplinary teams to strengthen collaboration and build more joined-up ways of working. By bringing partners together and encouraging shared ownership of challenges, you'll help create coordinated responses that improve outcomes for children, young people and families.
This is a role that helps shape the future. You will analyse information from SENDCO enquiries, service feedback, triage activity and performance data to identify trends, emerging needs and opportunities for improvement. Using this insight, you'll contribute to service development, locality planning and wider strategic decision-making across Oxfordshire's SEND system.
No two days will be the same. One day you may be supporting a complex SEND issue with school leaders, the next you could be leading a multi-agency discussion, briefing senior leaders, contributing to strategic planning or helping develop new approaches to strengthen early intervention and inclusion. Throughout everything you do, your focus will be on improving outcomes for children and young people and ensuring services work together effectively to support them.
About You
You are passionate about inclusion and believe that every child and young person deserves access to the right support at the right time. You understand the challenges facing schools, families and services, and you're motivated by the opportunity to influence systems and create meaningful, lasting improvements.
You will be an experienced SEND practitioner with a recognised teaching qualification and the National Award for SENDCO, or an equivalent advanced SEND qualification. You will bring substantial experience of supporting children and young people with SEND and a strong understanding of effective inclusive practice across education settings.
You'll have experience of leading and developing others, whether through formal management, professional supervision, project leadership or service improvement work. You will be confident supporting colleagues, providing challenge where required and creating an environment where people feel empowered to deliver high-quality practice.
Strong relationships are at the heart of this role, so you'll be an excellent communicator who can build trust with schools, settings, families and professional partners. You'll be comfortable navigating complex situations, bringing people together around shared goals and influencing positive change across organisational boundaries.
You will also be confident working with data and evidence to inform decision-making. You'll be able to identify trends, evaluate impact and use information intelligently to improve services and outcomes. At the same time, you'll never lose sight of the fact that behind every data point is a child, young person or family who needs support.
We're looking for someone who is strategic, resilient and forward-thinking, but equally committed to practical solutions and collaborative working. Most importantly, you'll share our ambition to create a more inclusive education system and help ensure children and young people across Oxfordshire receive the support they need to thrive.
If you're ready to lead change, support colleagues and help shape the future of SEND support across Oxfordshire, we'd love to hear from you. Join our community of Experts at Hand and play a leading role in ensuring children and young people receive the right support, at the right time.
Rewards and benefits
- Employee Assistance Programme including access to health and wellbeing support 24-7.
- Membership of the Local Government contributory pension scheme, with an employer’s contribution of up to 19.9%.
- Childcare vouchers, cycle to work scheme, electric car scheme, range of staff discounts including travel, holidays, insurance, food, health & leisure activities.
- Excellent learning and development opportunities.
- Range of family-friendly policies.
Our Values
Our organisational values underpin everything we do and say and are supported by policies, processes and guidance. In short, our values describe ‘the way we do things here’ so that we deliver great services for our residents. Our values are:
Always learning, Be kind and care, Equality and integrity in all we do, Taking responsibility, Daring to do it differently. Everyone that works for us demonstrates their commitment to these values. We will ask you to demonstrate your commitment to these values, and their associated behaviours, throughout the application process.
Your office base may be subject to change as we are currently transitioning between temporary and permanent office locations due to the closure of County Hall. If this is applicable to you, you will be notified, but no reimbursement will apply in respect of travel.
Our commitment to: Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
At Oxfordshire County Council we are proud of our diverse workforce. Everyone is accepted for who they are, regardless of age, disability, gender identity, marital status, race, faith or belief, sexual orientation, socioeconomic background, or on maternity or family leave. We have a number of staff network groups which provide peer support, education and safe spaces for all.
Our commitment to: Guaranteed Interview Schemes
As a Disability Confident employer, we guarantee an interview for disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the job. We also guarantee interviews to care leavers who have completed further education and who meet the essential criteria for the job. For those leaving care without any further education, we guarantee an interview for our apprenticeships. We are also committed to helping and supporting those transitioning from HM Armed Forces to civilian life and guarantee an interview for those demonstrating the essential criteria for the role, within three years of leaving the service.
Our commitment to: Safeguarding
Oxfordshire County Council are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults. We expect all employees, workers and volunteers to share this commitment. We will ensure that all our recruitment and selection practices reflect these commitments.
Our commitment to: Flexible Working
We are open to discussions about flexible working, which can include flexi-time, part time working, job sharing, nine-day fortnights and annualised hours, depending on the requirements of the role and the service.
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If you would like an informal discussion about this role, please contact Rachel.Morrison@oxfordshire.gov.uk
Due to the importance of having our Experts at Hand offer in schools as soon as possible, there is a tight deadline for this role as interviews are planned to take place in the week beginning 12th October.
