Area SEND Manager, SURREY COUNTY COUNCIL

Guardian Jobs; Woking; On-site; GBP 55,000 - 56,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Holiday allowance

Pension (local government)

Carer's leave

Volunteering days

Employee assistance programme

Job summary

Guardian Jobs in the United Kingdom is seeking an Area SEND Manager based in Woking to lead a busy SEND team. The role involves regular travel to schools and settings across the county to ensure timely, high-quality EHCPs and appropriate placements.

You will manage EHCP coordinators, contribute to multi-disciplinary discussions, and oversee budgets while maintaining strong relationships with schools, families, and partners. A relevant SEND qualification and registration are essential.

Qualifications

• Professional qualification and registration with post-qualification practical experience in SEND, or equivalent experience administering the SEND framework.
• Proven ability to apply critical analysis and evaluative judgement.
• Strong written and verbal communication with negotiation and influencing skills.
• Solid knowledge of SEND legislation and related processes.
• Experience in recruitment, management and development of staff.
• Competence with MS Office and database systems.

Responsibilities

• Manage a busy Area SEND team focused on the statutory annual review process.
• Ensure timely, high quality, legally compliant Education, Health & Care Plans.
• Secure appropriate special educational provision and placements.
• Build relationships with schools, families, and partners; maintain high customer care standards.
• Provide guidance and unblock complex casework through solution-focused approaches.
• Attend multi-disciplinary meetings and contribute to statutory decision making.
• Monitor and manage budgets in line with procedures.
• Use data to report progress, forecast demand and drive improvements.

Skills

Critical analysis

Communication

Collaborative work

SEND legislation knowledge

Staff recruitment & management

Problem solving

MS Office / databases

Education

Qualified SEND practitioner/registration

Tools

MS Office

Database management

Job description

The starting salary for this full-time, permanent position is £55,486 per annum, based on a 36 hour working week.

We're excited to be recruiting a new Area SEND Manager to join our fantastic SEND service base at Victoria Gate in Woking.

In addition to your office base in Woking, this role will require regular travel to visit schools and settings for the majority of the working week, sometimes at short notice when the need arises.

Our Offer to You

• 26 days' holiday, rising to 28 days after 2 years' service and 31 days after 5 years' service plus bank holidays
• Option to buy up to 10 days of additional annual leave
• A generous local government salary related pension
• Up to 5 days of carer's leave and 2 paid volunteering days per year
• Paternity, adoption and dependents leave
• An Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support health and wellbeing
• Learning and development hub where you can access a wealth of resources
• Wellbeing and lifestyle discounts including gym, travel, and shopping
• A chance to make a real difference to the lives of our residents

About The Role

At Surrey County Council, we are committed to ensuring that all children and young people with SEND receive an outstanding service, and we are well on our journey towards offering this. Our SEND and Inclusion Services work collaboratively in affecting timely and purposeful casework; ensuring the best possible outcomes for vulnerable children and young people. Relational and restorative working underpin all our practice with stakeholders, partners, clients and customers.

Our young people want adults who listen, explain things honestly, and keep them at the centre of every decision. Parents and carers value empathy, strong organisational skills, and a deep understanding of SEND legislation and diverse needs. Schools need consistent, accessible professionals who are experts in SEND and can guide them through the system with clarity and confidence.

We're looking for a compassionate, knowledgeable, and proactive individual who can build trusted relationships and communicate clearly.

Day to day, the Area SEND Manager has responsibility for managing a busy area SEND team which is primarily focussed on the statutory annual review process. You will ensure that your team can consistently deliver timely, high quality and legally compliant Education, Health & Care Plans through the annual review process. You will also ensure that your team can secure special educational provision and appropriate education placements.

You will build professional and productive relationships with colleagues, partners and stakeholders, such as school leaders and families, and have the resilience to work positively, in a solution-focused way, with families who may be experiencing anxiety or frustration about their children's circumstances. You will model these behaviours to your team, maintaining high standards of customer care as you advise on a range of complex SEND casework supporting your team to work relationally and professionally.

As our Area SEND Manager you will be involved in the following key areas of responsibility:

• Statutory aspects of Education, Health & Care Plans (EHCPs), EHCP writing, annual review management and securing special educational provision and placements
• Promoting and ensuring the team's proactive communication with customers
• Direct line management of EHCP Coordination Managers
• Providing advice and unblocking complex casework through solution-focused approaches
• Attending multi-disciplinary discussion meetings and contributing to statutory decision making
• Monitoring and managing budgets in accordance with financial procedures
• Ensuring complaints are handled effectively and that the team learns from these
• Using performance data to report progress, forecast demand and drive forward improvements

This is a challenging role but, by working in collaboration with children's Social Care, Health, parents/carers and families, as well as schools, your impact will help us to achieve the best outcomes for the children we support. If you're committed to collaboration, advocacy, and making things happen, we'd love to hear from you.

Your Application

In order to be considered for shortlisting, your application will clearly evidence the following skills and align with our behaviours:

• A professional qualification and relevant registration with post qualification practical experience, or relevant and practical experience in administering the statutory SEND framework or closely related work
• An ability to apply critical analysis and exercise evaluative judgement appropriately
• Proven written and verbal communication skills, with good negotiation and influencing skills, as well as the ability to work collaboratively
• Sound knowledge of SEND and related legislation
• High-level problem-solving skills with the capacity to devise and implement innovative solutions
• Demonstrable experience in successful recruitment, management, and development of staff
• Competence in a range of IT tools including MS Office and database management systems

An enhanced DBS 'Disclosure and Barring Service' check for regulated activity (formerly known as CRB) will be required for this role.

The role involves working in, and visiting, venues across the locality to build professional working relationships, therefore you will need to be willing and able to travel across the county as required.

The job advert closes at 23:59 on the 20th September 2026 with interviews planned to follow.

Local Government Reorganisation (LGR)

Surrey County Council is undergoing Local Government Reorganisation, moving from a two-tier system to two new unitary councils in April 2027. If you are employed by Surrey on 1st April 2027, your role will transfer with current terms and conditions to one of the new organisations, supporting local devolution and greater powers for our communities.

Our Commitment

We are a disability confident employer which means if you have shared a disability on your application form and have evidenced you meet the minimum shortlisting criteria as displayed on the advert, we guarantee you an interview.

Your skills and experience truly matter to us. From application to your first day, we're committed to supporting you with any adjustments you need, we value inclusion and warmly welcome you to join and help build a workplace where everyone belongs.