Education, Health and Care Needs Assessments Team Lead

The starting salary for this full-time, permanent position is £53,713 per annum based on a 36-hour working week.

We're excited to be recruiting a compassionate and knowledgeable Education, Health and Care Needs Assessments (EHCNA) Team Lead to join our fantastic Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) service based at Victoria Gate in Woking.

This role is open to hybrid working. As a team we split our time between working together in the office for a minimum of two days per week and working from home. We also aim for visits to schools and settings to take place on a regular basis as we continue to build on our collaborative working.

Our Offer to You

26 days' holiday, rising to 28 days after 2 years' service and 31 days after 5 years' service
Option to buy up to 10 days of additional annual leave
A generous local government salary related pension
Up to 5 days of carer's leave and 2 paid volunteering days per year
Paternity, adoption and dependents leave
An Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support health and wellbeing
Learning and development hub where you can access a wealth of resources
Wellbeing and lifestyle discounts including gym, travel, and shopping
A chance to make a real difference to the lives of our residents
Join our SEND Service and make a real difference! If you're committed to collaboration, advocacy, and making things happen, we'd love to hear from you.

About the Role

At Surrey County Council, we are committed to ensuring that all children and young people with SEND receive an outstanding service, and we are well on our journey towards offering this. Our SEND and Inclusion Services work collaboratively in affecting timely and purposeful casework; ensuring the best possible outcomes for vulnerable children and young people. Relational and restorative working underpin all our practice with stakeholders, partners, clients and customers.

Our young people want adults who listen, explain things honestly, and keep them at the centre of every decision. Parents and carers value empathy, strong organisational skills, and a deep understanding of SEND legislation and diverse needs. Schools need consistent, accessible professionals who are experts in SEND and can guide them through the system with clarity and confidence.

Day to day, the EHCNA Team Lead has overall responsibility for managing the newly established countywide Education Health and Care Needs Assessment team and for ensuring that timely and high-quality SEND casework is consistently delivered. You will lead on the 20-week statutory assessment process, ensuring your team consistently delivers high quality Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs).

You will build professional and productive relationships with colleagues, partners and stakeholders, such as families and school leaders. We're looking for someone who can bring resilience and professionalism to work in partnership with families, recognising the varied responses that can arise from navigating complex processes and challenging situations concerning their children's needs. You will model these behaviours to your team, maintaining high standards of customer care as you advise on a range of complex SEND casework.

As our EHCNA Team Lead you will be involved in the following key areas of responsibility:

Statutory aspects of Education, Health & Care Needs Assessments (EHCNAs) and Plans (EHCPs), EHCP writing and securing special educational provision and placements
Promoting and ensuring the team's proactive communications with customers
Direct line management of EHCNA Managers
Providing advice and unblocking complex casework through solution-focused approaches
Attending multi-disciplinary discussion meetings and contributing to statutory decision making
Monitoring and managing budgets in accordance with financial procedures
Ensuring that the team learns from complaints
Using performance data to report progress, forecast demand and drive forward improvements

Your Application

In order to be considered for shortlisting, your application will clearly evidence the following skills and align with our behaviours:

A professional qualification and relevant registration together with post…