Assistant Director Accessible and Inclusive Education Provision in Sheffield

Sheffield City Council is seeking an exceptional senior leader to join our Belonging Directorate as Assistant Director – Accessible and Inclusive Education Provision. This is a pivotal strategic role with citywide responsibility for ensuring that all children and young people—particularly those facing disadvantage, exclusion, or disruption to their education—receive high quality, inclusive educational provision.

Sheffield is a city that blends innovation, natural beauty, and a vibrant community spirit. Known as the “Greenest City in Europe,” Sheffield boasts over 4.5 million trees and more than 250 parks and gardens—offering the highest ratio of trees to people of any city on the continent. A third of the city lies within the stunning Peak District National Park, making it the only major UK city with a national park inside its boundaries. Sheffield’s proud industrial heritage, world-class universities, and rich cultural scene make it a fantastic place to live and work.

We’re committed to making a real difference for our residents and our workforce. We offer:

• A supportive, inclusive, and flexible working environment
• Generous annual leave and pension schemes
• Opportunities for professional development and career progression
• A strong focus on staff wellbeing, diversity, and work-life balance

This is a rare opportunity to:

• Shape the future of accessible and inclusive education across Sheffield
• Make a lasting difference to the lives of children and young people
• Operate at the heart of system leadership, influencing policy, practice and outcomes citywide

As a member of the Service Leadership Team, you will:

• Provide strategic leadership for accessible and inclusive education services across the city
• Act as the Virtual Head, fulfilling all statutory responsibilities for children in care and other vulnerable cohorts
• Lead services that include: Virtual School, Elective Home Education (EHE), Children Missing Education (CME), Attendance, Section 19 provision, Alternative Provision and Inclusion Strategy delivery

You will be accountable for operational performance, statutory compliance, financial management and service improvement, ensuring strong outcomes for children and young people.

You will be a credible, experienced senior leader with:

• A strong track record at a very senior level within Local Authority Children’s Services or inclusive education
• Deep knowledge of: Virtual School statutory duties, SEND Code of Practice, Children and Families Act, Safeguarding and child protection
• Experience of leading services through inspection
• Proven ability to lead complex systems, manage risk, and deliver improvement at pace
• Experience of working effectively in a political environment, including with elected members
• Strong financial, people and performance management skills
• The confidence to challenge constructively and drive system change

Ready to make a difference? Apply now and join a team that’s passionate about improving lives in Sheffield.

For further information or an informal discussion please contact: Steve.Kay@sheffield.gov.uk

Interviews: – week commencing 20th April 2026

We are investing in our workforce and are promoting opportunities to our under-represented groups. We value equality, diversity and inclusion and are focused on increasing the diversity of our workforce, particularly the number of Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic, Disabled and LGBTQ people, so that our teams reflect the communities in the city we serve. We are also supporting staff with unpaid caring responsibilities to work flexibly. It is a great time to join us and we welcome your application.

Under the Guaranteed Interview scheme, applicants who are disabled, care leavers, or armed forces veterans will be guaranteed an interview if they meet the essential criteria and indicate their eligibility on the application form.

Full-time employees work 37 hours for 52 weeks of the year and we offer a generous holiday entitlement. We are open to discussions about a wide range of flexible working opportunities which benefit you and the Council, including reduced hour contracts, working part time or as a job share.

If you are appointed to this role, your starting salary will be at the bottom of the grade. If you provide payslip evidence that your basic pay is greater than the bottom of the grade, we will consider starting you at the point of minimum advantage within the grade. Equality of pay is extremely important to us. All roles at Sheffield City Council are going through an evaluation process which may result in changes to some pay arrangements from 2026.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all individuals, ensuring a safe and supportive environment for everyone and where appropriate to the role the successful applicant will be required to undertake relevant safeguarding checks.