Specialist Health Advisor for SEND - Team Lead in Bristol

Main area: Children's SEND Services

Grade: NHS AfC: Band 7

Contract: Fixed term: 12 months (Maternity Leave Cover)

Hours: Part time, Flexible working, 16.5 hours per week

Job ref: 083-8022851-WW

Employer: Sirona care & health CIC

Employer type: NHS

Site: To be confirmed

Town: Bristol, North Somerset or South Glos

Salary: £49,387 - £56,515 per annum, pro rata

Salary period: Yearly

Closing: 09/06/2026 08:00

Job overview:

We are looking for a Specialist Health Advisor to join our team! The Specialist Health Advisors for SEND (SHAS) service supports children and young people who are identified as having additional education, health and care needs. We play a supporting role in helping children, young people and their families who need an Education Health and Care Needs Assessment (EHCNA) to understand their health needs that may impact their education. We support the Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire (BNSSG) Integrated Care Board (ICB) and Designated Clinical Officer (DCO) for SEND to ensure that they fully discharge all of their statutory duties for children and young people (CYP) with SEND.

Main duties of the job:

• You will jointly manage a team of Specialist Health Advisors for SEND whilst working alongside the Professional Lead and Head of Service to ensure an effective, integrated and well-coordinated service.
• You will work within a team responsible primarily for providing a health contribution for children and young people with Special Educational Needs and/or Disability (SEND) as part of their Education, Health and Care (EHC) needs assessment, and for those C&YP with an Education, Health and Care Plan already in place.
• You will provide expert clinical opinion, support and guidance whilst acting as a conduit for information exchange between each of the three Local Authorities (Bristol, South Gloucestershire and North Somerset) and the clinical services provided within Sirona's Children's Services.

Working for our organisation:

Ever dreamt about a career that sparks excitement and fosters your professional growth? Picture yourself waking up eager to make a real difference in our community, surrounded by teams who value your unique ideas. We are Sirona care & health – England’s largest provider of Adult’s and Children’s Community Services and we’d love for you to join us in Bristol, North Somerset or South Gloucestershire.

Agenda for Change Salary, full NHS benefits, 27+ days’ annual leave, and participation in the NHS Pension Scheme – just a glimpse of the benefits you’ll receive.

We welcome and encourage all applicants. We are committed to having a workforce that reflects the communities we support and are proactively seeking to improve the diversity of our workforce. We know diversity fosters creativity and innovation. We are committed to equality of opportunity, to being fair and inclusive, and to being a place where all belong. We aim to draw upon the widest possible range of views and experiences to meet the changing needs of our colleagues, partners and communities we serve.

Whether you're starting your journey in healthcare, looking for a fresh challenge within the NHS, or contemplating a career change, don't be daunted by the prospect of something different – we create development opportunities for all our colleagues and apprentices.

Interested? View our benefits leaflet which you can find attached to this vacancy.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities:

Please see the attached Job Description for a full list of duties and responsibilities before applying for this position.

Sirona care & health currently recruit overseas nursing and therapy staff through an NHS Trust Supplier and we adhere to the NHSE Code of Practice in relation to applicants from Red List countries. We are therefore, unable to accept any direct applications to this advert from candidates who are not already based in the UK.

If you refer to qualifications or employment within your supporting statement, that has not been included in your Qualifications, Training or Employment History, this information may be discounted.

Person specification:

• Qualifications: Registered Speech and Language Therapist, Occupational Therapist, Physiotherapist, Nurse or Clinical Psychologist; Educated to Degree level or equivalent experience demonstrated through clinical practice; SEND Training levels 1-4; Post graduate Leadership or Management Qualification.
• Experience and Skills: Experience in line management or supervision; Knowledge and understanding of the key issues affecting outcomes for children, young people and families, particularly children and young people with SEND; Experience of working collaboratively with Local Authority and Education partners, either at a leadership level or at a clinical level; A thorough understanding of the SEND Code of Practice and the statutory duties of the EHCNA process; An understanding of some of the key challenges currently being faced both locally and nationally in relation to SEND; Experience of initiating, implementing and managing change and service improvement.

You must have appropriate UK professional registration. This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.