SEND Consultant

SEND Consultant

£550 daily rate – umbrella

12 month contract initially

Exeter / Hybrid – 2 days per week onsite

Our Public Sector Client is seeking a Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) Funding and Specialist Places Client Lead.

The successful candidate will internally review and improve the Local Authority’s approach to funding specialist provision and also work directly with schools and multi-academy trusts (MATs) in Bristol to deliver new Specialist places in mainstream settings to meet the needs of children and young people with SEND.

Key deliverables

• Review of end-to-end SEND financial processes
• Delivery of changes to and formalisation of new funding models
• Review of financial governance arrangements and implementation of improvements
• Implementation of standard operating procedures and job roles to ensure data accuracy and financial compliance
• Other appropriate deliverables to be determined following outcome of reviews
• Development of SEND sufficiency plan
• High quality SEND placements in line with agreed plan

Qualifications and experience

• Proven work experience in leading changes to SEND financial systems.
• Good knowledge of SEND and related statutory responsibilities of Local Authorities including a strong understanding of SEND school place allocation and sufficiency planning for SEND placements.
• Possess a strong understanding of capital delivery in educational settings and a successful track record of managing a significant capital programme with a complex stakeholder landscape
• Experience of working with schools to negotiate and deliver school places. Experience of school sufficiency planning is also essential.
• Senior leadership experience within a local authority setting and/or experience of leading multi-disciplinary teams to deliver client needs.
• Knowledge and understanding of the financial pressures faced by education settings and local authorities.
• Excellent analytical skills including creating detailed reports. Ability to think strategically, problem solve and provide innovative solutions at pace.
• Excellent interpersonal, communication and presentation skills, with proven ability to communicate effectively to a wide range of audiences both horizontally and vertically, financial and non-financial, throughout the organisation. Ability to quickly build rapport and trust with clients and colleagues.
• Project/programme management qualification is desirable.