SEND Consultant

Brighter Futures for Children
RISE (Reading Inclusion Support in Education) Team

Maternity Cover for 12 months
Part time, 29.6 hours

About us
Brighter Futures for Children is a not-for-profit company, owned by, but independent of, Reading Borough Council. Although we are independent, we are very much part of the Reading Family. Our people enjoy all of benefits as other Council employees including membership of the Local Government Pension Scheme and continuous service.

 

We work closely with partners in the local community and key organisations including Reading Borough Council, policy, public health and voluntary groups. We are responsible for the delivery of children’s social care, early help & prevention, education services (including SEND). This also includes fostering and adoption, the Youth Offending Service and traded services with schools.

 

Our main aim is to protect and enhance the lives of the children of Reading. We help families find long-term solutions to ensure children lead happy, healthy and successful lives.

About the role

 

The SEND Consultant will be working within the already established RISE service, part of Brighter Futures for Children’s SEND team and part of the wider Education team. This SEND Consultant will lead on liaising with our local secondary schools.

 

The SEND Consultant (reporting to the Senior Educational Psychologist/RISE Service Lead) will provide management in the wider RISE/SEND Team. They will provide expert advice to schools, working at a school/group/individual level.

 

The roles and responsibilities include:
• To support the further development of high-quality inclusive practice within Reading schools so that children and young people with SEND have their needs met in an effective, timely and sustainable manner.
• Coordination and provision of advice, support and guidance relating to SEND for all schools within the postholder’s allocated group.
• Co-ordination of Reading’s SENCo Forum, to include scheduling, creating agendas for and chairing SENCo Forum meetings, ensuring that attendee lists are kept up to date.
• Ensuring SENCos within the postholder’s cluster are well informed regarding local and national developments in SEND policy and practice.
• Co-ordination of signposting to, and delivery of, relevant outreach and support services as well as to examples of good practice in other schools locally.
• Work with colleagues to coordinate and deliver a calendar of induction sessions for newly appointed SENCos with related programme of training and support including input from other teams or external agencies as appropriate.
• To take responsibility for the day-to-day management and deployment of a team of SEND Specialist practitioners.
• To provide professional leadership and guidance to the Reading SENCo network and ensure that it is closely linked with SEND policy and initiatives.
• To co-ordinate and chair panel meetings for Reading’s ‘Additionally Resourced Provisions’ (ARPs),
• To work with colleagues in the school effectiveness team to quality assure the provision made for children with SEND in Reading ARPs, and to provide support and robust professional feedback where necessary.
• To provide robust and effective advice, support and challenge to school staff in identifying and supporting children with SEND to improve outcomes and ensure their understanding of the graduated support framework and the ordinarily available drawing upon the guidance set out in Reading’s ‘Ordinarily Available Provision’ document.
• Improve the quality of requests for assessment and increase the proportion of appropriate referrals. Coordinate the feedback processes following unsuccessful EHCP requests. Ensure that feedback is provided on applications including signposting to suitable training opportunities.
• To identify, plan, develop, and deliver training and professional development opportunities to school settings to improve practice and support children who may be disadvantaged, specifically targeting those with SEND.
• Working with the RISE Data analyst and Community Engagement and Research Officer to contribute towards gathering data regarding evidence of changes in local needs, analysing gaps in local services, and assessing the impact of existing services, to help inform the commissioning cycle and supporting colleagues in commissioning in ensuring Reading’s SEND Local Offer reflects the local context and is effective in meeting needs.
• To work in close partnership with the Head of SEND, the Educational Psychology Service and the School Effectiveness Service to ensure a consistent and sustainable model of service delivery across the area among colleagues in Children’s Services, parents and carers, schools including specialist provisions attached to mainstream and special schools, local health services, specialist hospitals and centres of assessment, out of area placements for children and young people with SEND, voluntary organisations, and services in other areas,
• To actively contribute to the improvement of Reading’s ‘Ordinarily Available Provision’ and ‘Graduated Response’ documents in a manner that is consistent with:
o The aims of RISE,
o Brighter Future’s commitment to inclusive and trauma informed practice and,
o Co-produced with all key stakeholders, both internal and external.
• To take reasonable care of your own health and safety and co-operate with management, so far is necessary, to enable compliance with the company’s health and safety rules and legislative requirements.
• To undertake such personal training as may be deemed necessary to meet the duties and responsibilities of the post.

 

Brighter Futures for Children is a dynamic organisation which recognises the need to respond flexibly to changing demands and circumstances. While this job description provides a summary of functions and responsibilities of the post, this may need to be adapted or adjusted to meet changing circumstances. Such changes would be commensurate with the grading of the post.

For more information about the role, please read the job description and person specification.

 

Our offer
We offer a supportive environment to grow and develop your career with the opportunity to put your ideas across. Innovation and ambition are strongly encouraged, and you’ll get a great feel for that working in our friendly and collaborative environment.

 

A competitive salary alongside a range of benefits including:
• A competitive salary alongside a range of benefits including:
• Local Government Pension Scheme with generous employer contribution
• Incremental holidays starting with 26 days plus public holidays (rising to 33 after 10 years’ service)
• Discounted Child Care (on site nursery)
• Cycle to work scheme.
• Season train ticket loans
• Salary Sacrifice Car Lease Scheme
• A range of local shopping discounts

Inclusion and Diversity
We want Brighter Futures for Children to be a great place to work and to ensure that our children, young people and families are represented in leadership roles and positions of power. A vital part of this is ensuring we are a truly inclusive organisation that encourages diversity in all respects, including diversity of thinking.

We particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian and those of Other Ethnicities, LGBT+, disabled and neurodiverse communities to make a real difference to our children, young people and families so that equalities and justice remains at the heart of everything we do.

 

Asking for Adjustments
Brighter Futures for Children is committed to making our recruitment practices barrier-free and as accessible as possible for everyone. This includes making adjustments or changes for disabled people, neurodiverse people or people with long-term health conditions.

If you would like us to do anything differently during the application, interview or assessment process, including providing information in an alternative format, please let us know.

 

Closing date: Monday 7 April 2025
Interview date: Friday 11 April 2025

 

We look forward to hearing from you!