SEND and Specialist Services sits within an integrated education and children's service. We value diverse perspectives and experiences and are striving to create a workplace culture that is inclusive, is accepting of all and is free from discrimination and bias.  Our strong and well-established team has built a culture of partnership with schools, social care, health and education support services. Together we strive to raise educational achievement for all children, through high aspirations and extended opportunities to enable children to be the best they can be.

In line with our One Coventry Values we strive to have a workforce that reflects our local communities and welcome applicants from all sections of the community. We particularly welcome applicants from minority ethnic backgrounds, applicants who have a disability and applicants who are from the LGBTQ+ community to apply for our senior leadership roles. 

Our Values are:

• Open and fair: We are fair, open, and transparent.
• Nurture and develop: We help and encourage everyone to be their best and do their best.
• Engage and empower: We talk and listen to others, working together as one.
• Create and innovate: We embrace new ways of working to continuously improve.
• Own and be accountable: We work together to deliver the best services for our residents.
• Value and respect: We put diversity and inclusion at the heart of all we do.

Due to the temporary secondment of the current post  holder, we are looking for an experienced SEND leader with immediate availability to sustain our relentless journey towards excellence. This is a 22 hour, 12 month fixed term contract.

You will provide strategic leadership and management across the Coventry SEND partnership, ensuring that the local authority fulfills its statutory responsibilities. This includes securing a diverse range of high-quality, inclusive provisions to meet the needs of all individuals within our community.

You will also be responsible for:

• Championing the rights of children and young people with additional needs from a range of diverse backgrounds   by securing in partnership positive pathways to adulthood, by ‘lifting the cloud of limitation’.
• Maximising value for money across high needs and Dedicated Schools Grant areas of responsibility.  
• Ensuring that exemplary safeguarding standards are maintained across the Coventry education system.

We are looking for a leaders who embraces inclusivity, is culturally sensitive and values diversity and promotes a culture of respect, collaboration and continuous improvement.

You will be outcomes focussed, have current experience of central Local Authority SEND systems and be able to evidence their impact, and have a passion for co-production.  In return you will join a high performing stable leadership team, who have a united passion for securing positive outcomes for vulnerable children, in partnership with education providers and other partners within the system.

The children we work with come from a variety of backgrounds and in order to deliver the best possible care it is vital that we have a workforce that represents and understands their unique experiences and perspectives.

In order to shape and deliver our services in an effective way, we want to ensure that we have employees from a range of different backgrounds, identities and different lived experiences so that we are able to meet the needs of all the communities that we serve. Our workforce data shows that men and people from minority ethnic backgrounds are under-represented at senior management level and encourage applicants from these backgrounds to apply.  This does not prevent individuals with or without other protected characteristics as set out within the Equalities Act 2010 from applying for this post.  

Following recommendations from Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) for an additional pre employment check with effect 1 Sept 22, please note, an online search may form part of this recruitment process.

If you need help or support to complete your application, please visit our accessibility page to see how we can assist you.

For full details on the application process please read the attached document labelled 'Coventry City Council Application Process'

Interview date: 07 June 2024

Coventry has a proud, innovative and creative spirit that throughout its history has seen communities come together to tackle problems and bring about real social change.

We are cutting-edge, challenging, youthful, vibrant and diverse.

At Coventry we are committed to excellence in everything we do. With around 5100 staff from a range of different backgrounds, our aim is to recruit and develop talented people who will focus on our customers, take responsibility, work together and find better ways of doing things.

To deliver the best services to our residents, we need the best people working for us to make a difference to our communities.

If you join us, we will provide a fantastic rewards and benefits package - to find out more please visit https://www.coventry.gov.uk/council-vacancies