SEND Participation Officer

The role

Make a real impact-give young people a voice in shaping Southwark's future.

Are you passionate about ensuring young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) are heard? Do you believe in co-production and championing children's rights? If so, this is your opportunity to be at the heart of shaping SEND services in Southwark.

About the Service

At Southwark Council, we are committed to putting young people with SEND and their families at the centre of decision-making. Our Children & Families division works tirelessly to ensure that their voices are not just heard but actively shape the services that support them. Through advocacy, engagement, and co-production, we aim to create a more inclusive and responsive service that meets the needs of our diverse community.

About the Role

As the SEND Participation Officer, you will be the driving force behind ensuring young people with SEND and their families play an active role in shaping the services they use. You will:

• Lead on co-production and engagement activities, ensuring that young people are at the heart of decision-making.
• Establish and manage a Young Person's SEND Forum, providing regular updates to the SEND Partnership Board.
• Coordinate and facilitate consultation, participation, and advocacy opportunities for children, young people, and families.
• Work closely with schools, health and social care professionals, and community groups to promote collaboration.
• Deliver training and workshops to empower young people with SEND and build their confidence in advocating for themselves.
• Develop an accessible communication strategy, including newsletters and easy-read materials.
• Oversee engagement budgets and ensure best practices in participation and SEND strategy implementation.

This is a fantastic opportunity to influence policy, develop innovative participation strategies, and directly impact the lives of young people in Southwark.

About You

You are an advocate, a communicator, and a leader. To succeed in this role, you will bring:

• Proven experience in participation and engagement with young people with SEND.
• Strong knowledge of SEND legislation (Children and Families Act 2014, SEND Code of Practice 2014) and its application in local services.
• A deep commitment to inclusivity, co-production, and children's rights.
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to engage young people, families, professionals, and stakeholders.
• The ability to manage projects, coordinate events, and facilitate meaningful engagement.
• A creative and strategic mindset-someone who can develop innovative ways to enhance young people's involvement in decision-making.

If you are ready to make a difference and ensure young people with SEND have a powerful voice in Southwark, we'd love to hear from you.

Join us and be part of something bigger-empowering young people, shaping services, and making Southwark a truly inclusive borough.

Recruitment timetable

Advert close: 14th March

Guaranteed Interview Scheme:

As part of our commitment to inclusion, we offer guaranteed interviews for specific groups of people. To qualify, you'll need to meet the minimum requirements for the role, and identify with one of the below criteria:

* Members of the Armed Forces and veterans
* Are currently in care, or have previously been in care
* If you consider yourself to be disabled or if you have a long-term health condition

We are an organisation who is passionate about our people and understands that richness of diversity is a requirement to provide the best possible services to our communities. This is demonstrated through our council-wide ambitious commitment to tackle racial inequality in our communities and workforce through our Southwark Stands Together programme. We particularly welcome applications from members of the Black, Asian and ethnic minority communities to increase representation at senior management level in the Council.

Additional details

This post requires a satisfactory Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) DBS check at Enhanced level.

Benefits and more information:

In your role, we want you to feel supported, challenged and rewarded. You will benefit from our family-friendly policies including flexible working, home working, and a local government pension scheme, plus many other staff benefits. You will join a motivated, driven and supportive team that strives for excellence and values its members. You will also be part of a successful and high-achieving development team that is making a real difference to the lives of residents in the borough. For more information about the wide variety of benefits you can take advantage of please visit our Staff Benefits page.