SENDCO & Lead Teacher in Stafford

Location: Ridge Hill School, Madeley Heath, CW3 9LY

Salary: MPS/UPS + SEN allowance (£4500) + TLR2 (£4500)

Contract: Full time, permanent

We are a small, highly specialised school dedicated to 35 extraordinary learners with moderate autism and associated learning needs. At our school, we don’t just manage autism; we celebrate neurodiversity and build bespoke pathways for every child.

We are looking for a SENDCO who is a practitioner-leader - someone who loves the craft of teaching but has the strategic vision to shape our entire SEND provision as a key member of the School Leadership Team. This is a dual-impact role. You will spend part of your week in the classroom, modelling "gold-standard" autism practice, and the other part leading our statutory processes, managing our small team of TAs, and working with the Headteacher to drive the development of our exceptional school.

Key responsibilities:

• Strategic leadership: Work with the School Leadership Team to ensure our curriculum meets the complex needs of our pupils.
• Statutory excellence: Lead on EHCP annual reviews, ensuring every outcome is ambitious, measurable, and child-centred.
• Expert teaching: Deliver high-quality, sensory-aware lessons to a small class of pupils.
• Championing best practice: Mentor staff on strategies like TEACCH, PECS, and Zones of Regulation.
• Multi-agency liaison: With the support of the headteacher and school leadership team, act as a bridge between the school, parents, and external professionals (e.g. SALT, occupational therapy, educational psychology).

Who You Are

• The expert: You hold the National Award for SEN Coordination (NASENCO) or are willing to work towards this upon appointment, and have a deep, practical understanding of the autism spectrum.
• The leader: You have a sleeves-rolled-up leadership style. In a small school like ours, every staff member counts, and you lead by example.
• The communicator: You understand that for parents of autistic children, the school is their lifeline. You are empathetic, clear, and highly organised.
• The Adaptive Thinker: You can pivot a lesson or a strategy the moment you see a child is becoming dysregulated.

Why join us?

• Impact: With only 35 students, you will know every child’s name, their stims, their triggers, and their triumphs.
• Autonomy: We are small enough to be agile. If you have an innovative idea to support our pupils, you can make it happen.
• Collaboration: Work in a high-ratio environment where you are supported by a dedicated team of experts.
• A caring workplace: We are committed to providing an exceptional environment for our staff to thrive. With exceptional benefits including working from home options, a term-time holiday allowance, and teachers’ pension scheme. This role also holds significant potential for progression for an exceptional candidate.

How to Apply

Please submit your CV including all gaps in employment history and a supporting statement (no more than two sides of A4) outlining your experience in leading SEND provision and your philosophy on best practice for moderate autism.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. The successful candidate will be required to pass an enhanced DBS check and other checks related to safer recruitment will be undertaken.

At Ridge Hill School we pride ourselves in providing a nurturing, specialist sanctuary for children with autism and moderate learning needs. We have seven classes, and pupils are grouped vertically to ensure each individual is placed in the least restrictive environment, allowing for pupils to learn in peer groups of a similar age and importantly with a close alignment of level of need and support. Some of our classes focus primarily on pupils with communication and social interaction challenges, and others accommodate children with behavioural and sensory function challenges. As we consult on admission to our school these factors are considered to ensure we can meet each child’s individual needs whilst maintaining the quality of our provision and ratio of at least two adults (a teacher and a TA) with a maximum of 6 children in each class.

For an informal discussion with our headteacher please email.