Newham Council - SEND Commissioner

Remedy Social Work; England; Hybrid; GBP 40,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

A public sector organization is seeking a motivated Commissioner - Education and Inclusion to enhance education commissioning within the London Borough of Newham. This hybrid role involves strategic planning, performance management, and stakeholder collaboration to ensure effective education services for children and young people. Ideal candidates should have experience in education or social care commissioning, excellent analytical skills, and the ability to work across multi-agency teams.

Qualifications

• Proven experience in education, health, or social care commissioning and contract management.
• Strong understanding of SEND and Alternative Provision frameworks.
• Excellent data manipulation and presentation skills.
• Experience in project or program management.

Responsibilities

• Deliver education commissioning projects aligned with strategic priorities.
• Analyse complex data for commissioning decisions.
• Lead contract monitoring and identify areas for improvement.
• Develop service specifications and procurement documentation.
• Engage with stakeholders to understand service needs.

Skills

Analytical skills

Project management

Stakeholder management

Communication

Tools

Office 365 (Word, Excel, Teams, SharePoint)

Job description

About the Role

London Borough of Newham is seeking an experienced and highly motivated 'Commissioner - Education and Inclusion' to support the delivery of strategic commissioning activities within our Education Commissioning function. This role is instrumental in ensuring effective planning, procurement, monitoring, and review of education provision, including services for children and young people with SEND and Alternative Provision (AP) aged 0-25.

Reporting to the Assistant Director - SEND and Inclusion, you will work collaboratively across internal teams and with external stakeholders to drive forward commissioning priorities, support contract and performance management, and ensure services meet statutory responsibilities and provide high-quality outcomes.

This is a hybrid working role, requiring 1-2 days per week onsite in Newham, with the remainder remote.

Key Responsibilities

• Deliver and support a range of education commissioning projects, aligned with statutory requirements and local strategic priorities.
• Analyse and interpret complex data (e.g. service usage, needs assessments, costs, feedback) to inform commissioning decisions.
• Lead or support performance and contract monitoring activities, identifying underperformance and areas for service improvement.
• Assist in the development of service specifications, procurement documentation, and the evaluation of tenders for new or revised education services.
• Maintain robust commissioning processes and governance frameworks including quality assurance and financial compliance.
• Engage with children, young people, families, schools, providers, and multi-agency stakeholders to understand service needs and experiences.
• Work across departments including legal, finance, procurement, education, health, and social care to coordinate commissioning activity and ensure compliance.
• Conduct market and provider analysis to ensure the sustainability and suitability of local education provision.
• Stay up to date with national policy, legislative changes, and best practice to inform continuous service development.
• Prepare and present concise reports, briefings, and dashboards to managers and elected members.
• Champion equality, diversity, and inclusion in all commissioning work and uphold the Council's values and behaviours.

Person Specification

Essential Skills and Experience:

• Proven experience in education, health, or social care commissioning, contract management, and procurement processes.
• Strong understanding of SEND and Alternative Provision frameworks and relevant statutory guidance.
• Excellent analytical skills with the ability to manipulate, interpret and present data clearly to various audiences.
• Experience of project or programme management, including planning, coordination, delivery and evaluation.
• Strong communication, negotiation, and stakeholder management skills.
• Demonstrable experience of working in multi-agency environments, particularly across education, health, and care.
• Ability to work effectively using Office 365 tools including Word, Excel, Teams, and SharePoint.

If you are interested in this role please send your updated CV in the first instance.