Specialist SEND Practitioner Redeployment 24460

Suffolk County Council

Address: Landmark House Ipswich IP1 5PB Onsite

Salary: 34434 per annum (pro rata for part time)

Hours: 37 hours per week flexible working options available

Contract: Permanent

At Suffolk County Council we believe every child deserves the opportunity to thrive. Were looking for a knowledgeable and passionate Specialist SEND Practitioner to join our Integrated Front Door (IFD) team. This is an exciting opportunity to use your special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) expertise to help ensure children young people and families receive the right support at the right time.

Working at the point where concerns requests for support and referrals first enter Childrens Services youll provide specialist advice and guidance that helps colleagues and partner agencies understand the impact of SEND make informed decisions and improve outcomes for families. This role sits at the heart of Suffolks Families First approach helping to strengthen early identification preventative support and multi-agency working.

Reimagine the possibilities

Your role and responsibilities

As a Specialist SEND Practitioner you will:

• provide specialist SEND advice within the Integrated Front Door
• support professionals to identify additional needs strengths and vulnerabilities where SEND is a factor
• advise on pathways thresholds and available support services
• work closely with colleagues across childrens social care education health and Family Help services
• support early identification and intervention to improve outcomes for children and families
• provide advice guidance and signposting directly to families where appropriate
• contribute to a strengths-based inclusive approach which recognises the impact of disability on family life
• maintain accurate records and contribute to high-quality decision-making across the service
• share learning and insight to continually improve practice and responses to SEND-related needs.

You will have

Essential:

• significant experience supporting children young people and families where SEND is a key consideration
• a strong understanding of SEND disability and the challenges families may experience when accessing support
• experience of working within childrens services education SEND social care or a related field
• the ability to assess information identify risks and make proportionate recommendations
• experience working effectively with a wide range of partner agencies
• excellent communication skills including the ability to provide advice influence practice and build professional relationships
• strong written skills including recording information and preparing professional advice
• a commitment to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people
• the ability to work independently within a fast-paced environment whilst managing competing priorities.

Desirable:

• Knowledge of Signs of Safety and strengths-based approaches.
• Understanding of relevant SEND and childrens legislation and statutory guidance.
• Experience of delivering training mentoring or supporting colleagues.
• Experience supporting families where safeguarding concerns have been identified.

What to expect

This is a rewarding role where youll have the opportunity to influence practice and help shape positive outcomes for children and families across Suffolk.

The work can be fast-paced and will involve dealing with complex situations competing demands and conversations with families and professionals who may be seeking support during difficult circumstances. Were looking for someone who is resilient professionally curious and committed to helping children receive the right support at the right time.

About the Team

The Integrated Front Door is a multi-agency service bringing together professionals from across childrens services and partner organisations to ensure concerns are responded to quickly consistently and effectively.

Youll work alongside social workers referral and advice professionals and specialist practitioners helping to provide a coordinated response to children and families. The team works closely with education health police housing and other partners to ensure children receive the right help at the earliest opportunity.

Empowering Everyone

Werebig believers in potentialpossibilityand the power of different searching for ways to encourage respect and enable everyone to be the best they can be. We want torepresentthe diverse communities we serve. We welcome applications from all individuals especially those from groups that are currently underrepresented in the organisation as shown inourWorkforce Equality Report.

For more information

Please contactFlora Longhurst for a casual conversation. You can reach them by callingor emailing or Layla Cook by calling or emailing

How to apply

Step 1 -Read the Job and Person Profile (Word).

Step 2 -Click Apply Now to start your online application.

Step 3 -Upload asupporting statementanswering the following questions below (no more than 400 words per question). You should use theSupporting Statement template (Word).

1. Describe your experience supporting children young people or families where SEND or disability was a key factor. How did you use your knowledge to influence decisions or improve outcomes
2. Tell us about a time you identified safeguarding risks at an early stage. What action did you take and how did you ensure an appropriate and proportionate response
3. Give an example of when you worked with multiple agencies (e.g. social care health education or police) to support a child or family. What was your role and what was the outcome
4. Describe a situation where you helped ensure a child or family received the right support at the right time. What factors did you consider when deciding the next steps

Please note:Without a supporting statement your interest will not be supporting documents must be in either PDF or MS Word format.

For guidance on completing your application please seeourHow to Apply page.

Planning to useArtificial Intelligence (AI)Please ensure your applicationstillreflects your own skillsexperienceand used inappropriately your application may not be processed. Please readourguidance for using AIto understandwhatsacceptable.

Do you need any reasonable adjustments to help you to applyIf you are disabled and/or haveadditionalsupport needs you can request reasonable adjustments. You can do this by contacting our Recruitment Team ator. You can find examples ofpossible adjustmentsonourReasonable Adjustment pages.

Closing date:11.30pm3 September 2026

This authority is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children young people and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this (Disclosure and Barring Service)checks or police vetting will berequiredfor relevant posts.