SEND inclusion secondment opportunity

KCC is committing to an increase in the Inclusion Champion team which has been enormously successful in the academic year 2023-2024. As part of our annual self evaluation practice, the text in italics sets out what the team committed to achieve in September and what impact that has had as we work to develop an innovative and sustainable system which improves outcomes for the children of Kent.

• Rolling out a co-constructed set of SEND inclusion expectations of all mainstream schools - this has developed into the Continuum of Need and Provision following the successful engagement with the Localities Consultation.
• Identifying schools and Trusts where the evidence suggests there is a need to learn from current inclusive practice to develop their own practice further. This has developed into an analysis of why schools or trusts feel they cannot meet need and using this information to inform further strategic planning.
• Planned and systemic use of the capacity in the system to support mainstream schools through outreach for example from special schools, PRUs and SRPs. This has developed into working at system level to develop equity of access for all schools to a similar level of support and will develop further into District Provision Maps to support all schools and settings.
• Piloting a devolved decision-making to a Locality level including the deployment of multi-agency staff to support schools and a mechanism for challenging conversations about effective use of resources. The multi-agency teams are comprised of staff who are already in post but the evidence suggests that although individually their support is welcomed, it is not having the required strategic impact on increasing SEND inclusion capacity in the system. This has developed into a system wide change across the continuum where we will develop Professional Learning Communities so schools can learn from each other and to facilitate better access to other services.
• Strategically integrating a role for the newly trained inclusive leaders of education to support peer reviews with the ambition to embed this approach in locality-based clusters over time. This has developed into professional development opportunities for ILEs to facilitate workshops and feature in the District Provision Maps
• Support KCC in the development of effective systems and governance for Locality working so that the local area can be successful in achieving its critical success factors and improve inclusive outcomes. This has developed into a model of operation which will ensure that the Localites model has appropriate governance in place with transparency of information and data, financial sustainability and outcomes for children countywide.

The Inclusion Champions have two main roles:

• leading in-school or MAT leadership team discussions about barriers and challenges to SEND Inclusion development and signposting to support, including possibly to peer review and to support from Locality multi-agency teams
• supporting the delivery of SEND improvement projects, particularly the development of Locality working and the embedding of the Continuum of Need and Provision.

We are looking to expand the network of Inclusion Champions supporting in our work. We are particularly interested in hearing from any colleagues who may be in Swale, Thanet, Sevenoaks, Dover, Gravesham, Tonbridge and Malling, and Maidstone, also those who can represent special, infant and grammar settings. However, all applications will be considered.

The secondments would be equivalent of one day a week and can be flexibly delivered. The secondments will be for one academic year in the first instance, starting in September 2024.

The process

The recruitment timetable is as follows:

• Friday 28 June - advert circulated asking for CV and expression of interest
• Wednesday 3 July - closing date
• From Monday 8 July - MS Teams interviews

The shortlisting criteria are as follows:

• Experience and evidence of:
• leading impactful whole school improvement and SEND inclusion
• having implemented SEND inclusive practice in own organisation
• having supported improvement and development in other settings
• working in purposeful collaboration with other agencies
• participation in long term training and development programmes (for example, Inclusive Leaders of Education, NurtureUK).

The intention is to expand our county team which includes leaders with expertise from EY, primary, secondary non-selective, secondary selective, special, post 16 and academy trusts. Each member of the team will be allocated an area base but will have opportunities to work countywide.

If this opportunity is of interest please submit an Expression of Interest letter outlining why the post is of interest, together with evidence of impact to Brian Pottinger at Brian.Pottinger@kent.gov.uk by 5pm on Wednesday 3 July. Interview discussions will take place from the week beginning Monday 8 July on MS Teams.