Operational Lead (SEN Assessment Team) - Interim

Job Description & Person Specification

Operational Lead (SEN Assessment Team) SEN & Inclusion

Join us make a difference in our communities The Special Educational Needs Assessment Team (SENAT) manages the decisions and processes concerned with statutory education health and care needs assessment process for learners with an education health and care plan (EHCP) the placement of children in learning settings and the allocation of

resources to settings.

The team considers suitability of and where appropriate arranges the assessment and placement of children young people and young adults with special

educational needs in accordance with the provisions of the Children and Families Act 2014 (Pt 3 SEN) and associated regulations including the SEN Code of Practice to ensure that the statutory assessment procedures are followed and proposed

EHCPs are issued and reviewed within the timescales laid down by the regulations. This will be achieved through direct work with parents educational settings

young people health Social Care and other external customers and partnership organisations to establish the best ways to support learning for children and Young People (0-25).

About the job The purpose of the role is to provide operational and professional leadership to the

SENAT which comprises of six teams requiring integration and co-ordination as a substantial county wide service which covers the 0-25 age range. The role will contribute to the successful delivery of all statutory requirements as well as

ensuring the service is in line with the national picture in terms of adherence to deadlines comparative growth and the picture of the placement of learners.

SENAT is also responsible for the assessment and gatekeeping of placements made in the Independent and Non-Maintained Schools Sector and providing

additional resources to schools for individual children. You will be required to meet defined functional objectives and provide efficient customer focused services

which are reported into the Department for Education (DfE). You will need to realise service improvements now and in the future through resource planning

creative problem solving and managing workstreams within the SEND and Inclusion Strategy. This will involve analysis of current educational placements and future needs to develop additional placements and reduce the need for high-cost

placements in the independent sector.

Job Description & Person Specification

You will work closely with the SENAT Principal Service Lead Head of SEND and

Inclusion and Finance Team to influence budget savings and ensure the High Needs Budget spend is effective and efficient.

As Operational Lead you will support the Team Managers in complex case related decision-making and engage in strategic matters which support the core delivery

of SENATs statutory responsibilities. You will deputise for the Principal Service Lead and support the wider development of the service.

You will have specific areas of responsibility agreed between the Principal Service Lead and yourself. These areas will link the core operational tasks with

broader strategic challenges. For example coordination and oversite of complaints from service users and the Local Government Ombudsman;

providing advice and guidance regarding complex enquiries and supporting decision-making processes.

The Operational Lead will manage a team of SENAT staff that deliver to a service-wide role including Specialist Advisory Teachers Special Needs Officers and the Tribunal Officer and have oversite of Education Other than at School

(EOTAS) and Alternative Provision (AP).

What youll need to succeed Have excellent problem-solving skills with the ability to make sound pragmatic

decisions.

The ability to lead and inspire providing direction and support to individuals and

teams to ensure quality service delivery in an emotionally challenging and pressured environment.

Excellent listening and negotiation skills and the ability to persuade and influence a wide range of people in order to achieve the required outcomes for effective use

of resources for children with EHCPs.

The ability to challenge existing practices processes and activities and identify and

deliver innovative solutions and alternative courses of action working across health and social care as well as education. This will engender improved partnerships at a strategic level.

You will need to successfully negotiate the balancing of conflicting priorities from

difference partners in other services to ensure SENATs performance remains of a high standard and the needs of all services are balanced to ensure a joint approach to meeting children and young peoples needs. This will at times

require effective challenge and significant resilience due to level of interface inside and outside the organisation.

Sound partnership working skills with the ability to develop and manage effective links and relationships across and outside of the organisation and co-ordinate a

Job Description & Person Specification

range of partners to successfully deliver objectives

Be an excellent communicator with the ability to influence

Have research and knowledge management skills

Be able to analyse and make judgements based on principles. You will need to be clear thinking about objectives consider a range of options and be willing to have a meaningful dialogue with others in order to negotiate agreement with various

stakeholders. You will need tenacity in reaching desired outcomes whilst being pragmatic about the ways in which those outcomes might be achieved.

Extensive experience of a management role within the field of SEN and Disability

You will need emotional resilience and be skilled in stepping back from the emotion of a situation to ensure the overall service operates within a framework of openness transparency and fairness.

Job details Grade: Hay B Directorate Group: Education and Skills

Location: County Hall Chichester (with countywide responsibility)

Required experience and skills (These will be used as the shortlisting criteria)

Key Skills: 1. Ability to give detailed expert technical and management advice and use

considerable judgement to define and resolve problems and use effective research and planning skills to identify and construct creative solutions

identify solutions without clear guidance and to ensure the successful delivery of service provision.

2. The ability to make sound pragmatic problem-solving decisions which will have a wider service impact and could be business critical including the ability to create solutions to specific problems of a programme prioritisation

resource or performance related nature using managerial judgement and evaluative skills to make effective decisions where right and wrong answers are not available.

3. Highly developed communication skills in order to persuade negotiate or influence within or outside the organisation to achieve challenging/sensitive objectives and ensure implementation of solutions.

4. Ability to set & monitor objectives/timescales and meet planned activities projects and reviews challenge existing practices processes and activities and identify and deliver innovative solutions and alternative courses of

action.

5. Sound partnership working skills with the ability to develop and manage effective links and relationships across and outside of the organisation and

co-ordinate a range of partners to successfully deliver objectives.

Job Description & Person Specification

6. Ability to challenge existing practices and identify innovative solutions within the required framework.

7. Effective people management and performance management skills and the ability to provide direction and support to individuals and teams.

Qualifications and/or experience: Post graduate professional qualification relevant either to management or to

the professional service specialism; or equivalent level of significant experience demonstrating comprehensive application of the above levels of

knowledge in a relevant setting.

Significant experience in dealing with complex issues relating to SEND. Relevant chartered status of a professional body or equivalent high-level

experience of involved practices.

Broad significant theoretical knowledge across the specialism of the areas managed.

Demonstrable experience of delivering or co-ordinating a quality customer focused service to others.

Evidence of managing teams and leading staff to deliver an outstanding service to others.

Considerable experience of managing and leading business activities with conflicting requirements.

Considerable Experience of managing a budget and/or contributing to financially related decisions on larger spends.

Detailed knowledge of practices and procedures relating to management of discipline.

Sound practical and theoretical knowledge of the political environment of local government and partner organisations.

Key responsibilities Responsible for the SENAT advice guidance and training offer. This offer will be focused on delivery of the LA statutory functions specifically those which rely on

actions by key partners.

Manage an area of activity within SEND and Inclusion area of Education and Skills

ensuring that statutory performance targets are met and strategies are developed to ensure compliance and development.

Provide expert advice and guidance on complex issues relating to the service area

and performance of the SENAT team.

Engage with a range of partners at a strategic level to support appropriate

statutory engagement.

Provide management oversight to the delivery of strategies which support and challenge partners in adhering to their statutory requirements.

Co-ordinate the complaints process including MP enquires Local Government Ombudsman enquiries and Freedom of Information requests.

Formulate new policies and processes which consider the views of stakeholders (within WSCC and other Partner Organisations such as Health and schools and Parent/Carers).

Job Description & Person Specification

Contribute to successful implementation of the SEND Strategy to ensure that short and medium-term operational requirements are met. Be accountable for

providing professional leadership and managing the effective performance of the team to ensure the realisation of business/service improvements is achieved now

and in the future.

Where difficulties arise with the operational requirements of the service or performance fails to meet requirements supporting the SENAT Principal Service

Lead to produce service improvement plans and ensure their implementation.

Supporting the delivery of a customer focused service offering guidance and

support to the leadership team to support the delivery of defined performance indicators and business strategies.

Manage the effective service delivery for schools and families in regard to children

and young people with SEND.

Develop effective relationships with managers or partners across the wider

directorate other parts of the organisation and external organisations. This will include the negotiation of solutions to deliver objectives with a range of internal and external partners.

Ensure whole service adherence to the regulations outlined in the Children and Families Act 2014 and the SEND Code of Practice 2015. This involves following a

legislative framework and meeting statutory timelines in relation to Education Health and Care Needs Assessment and monitoring and reviewing Education Health

and Care Plans.

Pro-actively work with stakeholders including service users carers families commissioners service providers and communities to deliver change and quality

improvements.

Develop the shape of future service provision and budgets by recommending

changes to processes and practices and planning and developing the service.

Researching planning and constructing creative solutions to ensure the successful delivery of service provision primarily at an operational level.

Working across the management team to ensure solutions meet the required county council policies and procedures.

Analyse and evaluate complex information and identification of innovative solutions based on full understanding of involved procedures and practices.

Building links and relationships with other parts of the organisation and external

partners in order to achieve objectives.

Promote and develop a performance management culture managing poor

performance where necessary. Providing professional advice and support across a department supporting policy development and tackling difficult problems of a technical professional resource or people related nature as a principal

professional within the service specialism.

Analysis and evaluation of service provision and technical or service specialist

information; identifying solutions (according to existing policies and procedures) which shape service delivery. Also advising/supporting agreed programmes of

Job Description & Person Specification

work through the application of detailed technical knowledge.

Direct responsibility for providing advice on projects/other externalised

expenditure which may include short term tactical resource planning and allocation.

Effective and efficient management of resources including a team of SENAT staff that deliver to a service-wide role including Specialist Advisory Teachers and Special Needs Officers and the Tribunal Officer and have oversite of EOTAS and AP.

Effective communication of technical/specialist information to a range of audiences.

Management of specific projects and reviews on service provision.

Responsible for decision making associated with the expenditure of the High Needs Block in particular agreement to INMSS and Post 16 placements and other resources associated with learners with EHCPs. Responsible for needs-led

decisions against finite resources and for the implications on wider county council resources.

Our Values You will lead promote and demonstrate the values of our organisation.

Trust and Support

Listen and Act Upon

Customer Centred

Honest and Realistic Genuinely Valued

You will lead promote and demonstrate the cultural ambition of our organisation:

To become an organisation which lives and breathes our values where all of our

people are able to work in an empowered collaborative and innovative way to

make a real and positive difference to all our communities.

JD Code: H099

Date: March 2024