SENCO and Inclusion Coordinator - Nurseries - 104564 - Grade 4

University of Birmingham; Birmingham; On-site; GBP 28,000 - 33,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

40 days paid holiday

Volunteer day

Pension scheme

Three nurseries

Job summary

The University of Birmingham invites applications for the Nursery SEND and Inclusion Lead in our Edgbaston nurseries. You will work with a dedicated team to embed inclusive practice across all settings, ensuring equity and high quality care and education for every child.

This role requires qualified early education experience, strong communication, and the ability to manage a small team, liaise with parents and external agencies, and deliver comprehensive reports.

Qualifications

• Qualified in Early Childhood Education or relevant field to Level 3.
• SEND qualification is desired.
• Where possible GCSE English Language and Maths at Grade C or above.
• Experience of supporting children with a range of needs and vulnerabilities.
• Understanding of the EYPP processes.
• Robust knowledge of SEND Code of Practice and current legislation surrounding special educational needs.
• Experience of managing a caseload for early interventions to the EHCP process.
• Strong communication skills and ability to write comprehensive reports for agencies.
• Strong organisational skills and the ability to prioritise tasks.
• Ability to share and impart knowledge to colleagues with varying levels of knowledge.

Responsibilities

• Support Nursery Leadership teams in developing and implementing the SEND and Inclusion Strategy across sites.
• Coordinate SEND provision and policy implementation, ensuring staff understand and apply relevant strategies.
• Identify and apply for additional funding (ISEY, SSPP, EHCP, EYPP) when needed.
• Design and monitor a setting-wide approach for inclusive progress under the Graduated Approach.
• Maintain accurate records evidencing child and family journeys and support.
• Inform advice through child-centered evidence to practitioners.
• Complete applications and comprehensive reports for external agencies to access additional support.
• Assist with planning enhanced transitions for children, liaising with external professionals.
• Help staff reflect inclusive values in policies and curriculum, ensuring Birmingham Local Offer is promoted.
• Undertake other duties commensurate with the grade and support sustainability and diversity initiatives.

Skills

Strong communication skills

Team leadership

Planning and organisational skills

Equity and inclusive practice

Education

Level 3 Early Childhood Education or equivalent

SEND qualification (desirable)

Job description

Job Description

Position Details

Nurseries

Location: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK

Full time starting salary is normally in the range £27,546 to £29,171, with potential progression once in post to £32,595

Grade: 4

Full Time, Permanent

Closing date: 30th August 2026

Our offer to you

People are at the heart of what we are and do.

The University of Birmingham is proud to have been a part of the City of Birmingham and the wider region for over 100 years, and we are equally proud to be recognised as a leading global university. We want to attract talented people from across the city and beyond, support them to succeed, and celebrate their success.

We are committed to helping the people who work here to develop through our sector‑leading Birmingham Professional programme which provides all professional services staff with development opportunities and the encouragement to reach their full potential. With almost 5,000 professional services jobs in a wide-range of functions in Edgbaston and in our campus in Dubai, there are plenty of opportunities for you to be able to develop your career at the University.

We believe there is no such thing as a typical member of staff and that diversity is a source of strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation, and debate. We warmly welcome people from all backgrounds and are committed to fostering an inclusive environment where diversity is at the heart of who and what we are, and how we work.

Supporting our people to achieve a healthy work/life balance is important both to our employees and to the success of the University and, depending on the role, we offer a variety of flexible working arrangements. We therefore welcome discussions on all forms of flexible working. In addition, you will receive a generous package of benefits including 40 days paid holiday a year, one paid day a year for volunteering, occupational sick pay, and a pension scheme. We also have three high quality subsidised day nurseries.

The University is situated in leafy Edgbaston and there are excellent transport links to our beautiful campus, including main bus routes and a train station on site. On campus we have a state‑of‑the‑art sports centre with pool, shops, places to eat and drink, our own art gallery, museum and botanical gardens.

Find out more about the benefits of working for the University of Birmingham

Background

Department Overview

Campus Services (CS) employs over 1000 staff with a turnover exceeding £65m in the last financial year. CS plays a key role in the quality of the student, staff and visitor experience, providing services across diverse areas such as the University’s sporting facilities, food and beverage, cleaning, conferencing, hotel operations, day nurseries, Portering, post, branded and own‑brand retail outlets, visitor services and attractions (e.g., Winterbourne House & Gardens), student housing, transport, waste disposal and recycling. CS is a highly commercial organisation operating within the University context and has an ambitious strategic agenda, in terms of growing our service profile across both our Birmingham and Dubai campuses.

Our Nurseries

Join the award‑winning team at Birmingham Day Nurseries - the perfect place to learn and grow.

The University operates 3 successful day nurseries – The Elms and The Maples (both in Edgbaston), and The Oaks (in Selly Oak) – providing high quality childcare for over 330 children belonging to University staff, students and local families.

You will be joining a dedicated and supportive team of over 120 nursery professionals with many years of experience, in a warm and welcoming environment where you will be encouraged to develop and thrive.

Pre-appointment checks

In line with recommendations and regulations relating to Early Years safeguarding and recruitment, please note that for this role:

• The University will seek references from at least one referee prior to interview. Candidates must therefore provide at least one referee whom we can contact immediately. The remaining referees will usually only be contacted if you are offered appointment. Please indicate clearly on your application form which referee(s) we may contact prior to interview.
• Candidates invited to interview will be asked to disclose all past names, for the sole purpose of verifying identity for Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) and safeguarding checks. Candidates will be asked to bring documents to verify their identity (e.g. birth/adoption certificate and any evidence of name changes).
• All successful candidates will be required to undergo a DBS check covering all names used.

Role Summary

The role of the Nursery SEND and Inclusion Lead is to help ensure the setting is inclusive for every child, regardless of background, ability, language, or circumstance. Alongside our wider teams, they will embed inclusive values, practice, and culture across the whole setting with a focus on equity, access, and participation for all children. The SEND and Inclusion Lead will support management in ensuring that all children attending the University of Birmingham nurseries receive high‑quality care and education in a safe and secure environment where they feel welcomed and valued, with the opportunity to reach their full potential.

The post holder will be required to prioritise the safeguarding and wellbeing of the children in our nurseries and will need to work closely with parents, colleagues and external professionals in order to achieve this.

Main Duties

• Support Nursery Leadership teams in the development and implementation of the UOB Nursery SEND and Inclusion Strategy and ensuring that inclusion is embodied by all members of the nurseries and regularly included as part of our audits.
• Support the Nursery Management teams to monitor the day‑to‑day operation of the setting’s SEND policy and help coordinate SEND provision across all sites, ensuring that all staff have the understanding and knowledge to implement policies, procedures and relevant strategies.
• Where needed, seek out additional support for those children that may need it, including applying for additional funding, such as ISEY, SSPP, EHCP, EYPP and ensure that funds are utilised effectively and in accordance with children’s individual plans.
• Support management with the design, review and implementation of a setting‑wide approach that ensures early identification and that every child identified with SEND receives high‑quality, inclusive support that enables them to make meaningful progress and reach their full potential in accordance with the Graduated Approach.
• Maintain accurate and up‑to‑date records that help evidence the child and family’s journey and the support being provided or required.
• Draw on a range of sources, including the views of the child, to inform the advice and support being given to practitioners in determining the most appropriate strategies for improving children’s outcomes.
• Complete applications and comprehensive reports for sharing with external agencies and to access additional support for children
• Support keyworkers in fulfilling the sector responsibility of planning enhanced transitions for those children that may find the process challenging, liaising with external professionals including schools.
• Support the Nursery Management team in helping all practitioners within the setting to understand their responsibilities towards inclusion and how they may need to adapt their practice or approach to meet the differing needs of the children in their care, including those with SEND, those who are deemed as ‘Looked after’, those identified as vulnerable or those less advantaged families.
• Support the planning and delivery of training on inclusive environments, behaviour, and curriculum access through sharing updates from the sector, other professionals and information about good practice.
• Maintain strong collaborative relationships with parents so their insights inform all actions taken by the setting and that demonstrate empathy and understanding when engaging in challenging conversations.
• Facilitate workshops for parents who may have emerging concerns about their children, to enable them to meet with Internal and external professionals.
• In accordance with Statutory requirements, connect with the local authority and other agencies to liaise over individual children and gather information on wider sector issues such as securing sufficient expertise and experience.
• In accordance with statutory requirements, build strong partnerships and work collaboratively with organisations specialising in SEND and inclusion to enhance staff knowledge, strengthen provision, and ensure the setting remains aligned with best practice, whilst also understanding and promoting Birmingham’s Local Offer.
• Undertake other duties as required to support the management and development of the nursery.
• Liaise with the Nursery Leadership teams to help ensure that our policies reflect inclusive values and that each Nursery Curriculum has inclusion at the heart of it, whereby all nursery staff actively work to remove barriers to learning and development.
• Supports the University’s sustainability agenda through resource efficient working.
• Treats everyone with dignity and respect in line with current equality legislation including respond to equality and diversity issues in line with relevant university policies and procedures.
• Any other duties commensurate with the grade.

Required Knowledge, Skills, Qualifications, Experience

• Qualified in Early Childhood Education or relevant field to Level 3
• A SEND qualification is desired
• Where possible GCSE English Language and Maths at Grade C or above
• Experience of supporting children with a range of needs and vulnerabilities
• Understanding of the EYPP processes
• In depth knowledge of the factors that can impact children’s opportunities to learn and develop and strategies to support
• Ability to identify and respond to equality and diversity issues in line with relevant university policies and procedures relating to equality and diversity
• Experience in working with children with special educational needs, including behaviour management
• Robust knowledge of SEND Code of Practice and current legislation surrounding special educational needs
• Experience of managing a caseload for early interventions to the EHCP process
• Strong communication skills, ability to write legibly and present information well to liaise effectively with parents, external agencies, and colleagues
• Ability to write comprehensive reports that can be shared with other agencies
• Strong organisational skills and the ability to prioritise tasks effectively
• Ability to share and impart knowledge so that it is understood by colleagues with a range of different knowledge and experience levels
• In depth understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage Statutory Framework
• Ability to manage own workload and prioritise tasks appropriately.

Dimensions

You will directly manage a small team.

You will not manage a budget.

Planning and organising

This role has considerable responsibility for managing a team of staff and a range of activities in the Nursery, which will require you to plan ahead. You will be planning your own and others’ workloads.

Problem solving and decision making

This role will be working within overall processes and procedures, with an expectation that you will solve most issues within the group, but referring to your manager as appropriate.

Internal and external relationships

You will be leading a team and interacting with them, your managers, and with children and carers/parents from a range of backgrounds.

DBS Required

The University is committed to safeguarding and we promote safe recruitment practice, therefore all associated pre-employment checks will be undertaken before any appointment is confirmed. Due to the nature of the work undertaken in this role all successful applicants will be subject to a satisfactory DBS clearance prior to appointment.

Informal enquiries to Sarah Perrott, email: [e-mail]

Use of AI in applications

Use of AI in applications: We want to understand your genuine interest in the role and for the written elements of your application to accurately reflect your own communication style. Applications that rely too heavily on AI tools can appear generic and lack the detail we need to assess your skills and experience. Such applications will unlikely be progressed to interview.

We believe there is no such thing as a 'typical' member of University of Birmingham staff and that diversity in its many forms is a strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation and debate at the heart of University life. We are committed to proactively addressing the barriers experienced by some groups in our community and are proud to hold Athena SWAN, Race Equality Charter and Disability Confident accreditations. We have an Equality Diversity and inclusion Centre that focuses on continuously improving the University as a fair and inclusive place to work where everyone has the opportunity to succeed. We are also committed to sustainability, which is a key part of our strategy. You can find out more about our work to create a fairer university for everyone

on our website.