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Several exciting opportunities have arisen for Special Educational Needs (SEND) Keyworkers in Pupil Services due to an expansion in our team on permanent and fixed term contracts. To be an Islington SEND Keyworker (Case Officer) you will be passionate about making a positive difference to the lives of children and young people.

Main duties of the job

You will be working as a key part of the 0-25 SEND structure for Islington, supporting children and young people with an educational need and/or disability (SEND) who are applying for or have an Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP) and their families. There are opportunities in both the primary and secondary teams.

We are seeking motivated, and family focused SEND Keyworkers (Case Officers) to provide advice and support to parents and children aged 0-25 years with SEND. You will be working with families and professionals to ensure children and young people have the right provision specified in their EHCP, so they are able to successfully progress in education and make the next steps ultimately into adulthood. You will also play a crucial role in developing partnerships with our mainstream and specialist schools to ensure they can support our young people.

Working for our organisation

• In December Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) conducted a joint inspection of the local area of Islington. Their report was exceptionally positive.
• The findings in the joint inspection identified that leaders are focused on continually improving services in Islington. The area’s joint commissioning arrangements put children and young people’s needs first. Strong, strategic leadership brings together well-established teams across education, health and social care. Working together, their focus is on ensuring children and young people quickly receive the services they need. One successful example of this is the area’s work to redesign services to support children and young people’s social, emotional and mental health.
• There are robust systems and scrutiny measures established which support staff, promote good practice and allow us to focus on positive outcomes for our children and young people.
• We continue to be a DFe SEND sector led improvement partner and have been selected as one of the 24 Local Authorities to deliver the DfE’s change programme to test and refine national SEND and AP reforms.

The SEND Team in Islington are committed to delivering the best service possible to children and young people with SEND and their families and want to work closely with our educational settings and partner agencies to ensure special educational needs and disabilities are well supported. Prior experience is not mandatory but exceptional verbal and written communication skills are. Along this you should have experience within an education or care environment, be proactive, resilient and want to make a difference to our families.

We are particularly keen to hear from applicants who reflect the diverse communities within the borough.

Join us, and you’ll help transform lives for the better.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Coordinating EHC needs assessment processes for children and young people with complex needs and their annual reviews.

Being responsible for the coproduction of Education Health and Care EHC needs assessment for children and young people with complex needs and their annual reviews ensuring provision is secured in line with the Children and Families Act and SEND Code of Practice.

Ensuring the authority complies with the SEND Code of Practice including adhering to all statutory timeframes and processes for both new assessments and annual reviews of Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plans.

Writing and amending Education Health and Care (EHC) plans for children and young people with SEND.

Acting as a single point of regular and consistent contact for children, young people and their families, providing information in respect to education options and signposting towards sources of further support.

Supporting children and families through assessment and planning processes and empowering them to make informed decisions in respect to an appropriate school placements.

Working in partnership with our mainstream and specialist schools and partner agencies to ensure children and young people have the appropriate provision to meet their needs to enable them to achieve their aspirations.

Liaising with Education, Health, Social Care, and Voluntary Sector agencies.

Coordinating different services, practitioners, and agencies, including organising, leading and participating in Team around the Child/Family meetings.

Opportunities to be involved DfE’s change programme to test and refine national SEND and AP reforms.

Person specification

Qualifications

• Professional qualification or studying towards a professional qualification in a relevant field e.g. Education, Health, Social Care, Youth Work or substantial experience in a similar role.

Experience

• SEN case work experience in a local authority environment, working with a complex and varied caseload.

Skills

• Knowledge and understanding of the Children and Families Act , the SEND Code of Practice and other legislation, current national developments and local policy in the area of special educational needs/disability.
• Ability to communicate tactfully, sensitively and helpfully with service users whilst adhering to Islington’s customer care standards.
• Ability to liaise with other professionals within and beyond the Council, to resolve problems and develop effective working relationships across a wide range of disciplines and agencies.
• Ability to understand the educational and broader needs of children with SEN and disabilities, that include: •Communication and interaction; •Cognition and learning •Social, emotional and mental health •Sensory and / or physical needs.
• Ability to form and maintain appropriate relationships and personal boundaries with children and young people and their families.
• Displays an awareness, understanding and commitment to the protection and safeguarding of children and young people and ability to work in accordance with Council policies and procedures.
• Ability to write accurately and clearly for different purposes and different audiences.
• Ability to keep children and young people’s records up to date using internal ‘ONE’ database system as well as utilising the system to drive workflow.
• Excellent ICT skills including experience of Microsoft Outlook, Word and Excel.
• A commitment to providing a responsive and supportive service and a willingness to constantly seek ways of improvement.
• Ability to cope with a fluctuating and heavy workload whilst maintaining a high standard of accuracy.
• Ability to adhere to the Council’s Dignity for All policy and a commitment to deliver services within the framework of Islington’s equalities policies.

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