SEND Early Years Support Teacher

Coventry City Council; Greater London; On-site; GBP 38,000 - 48,000; Full time

Job summary

Coventry City Council is seeking an outstanding Early Years teacher to join the SEND Early Years team on a permanent, full-time, term-time-only contract. You will support schools, settings and families in meeting the needs of children aged 0 to 5, modelling and coaching strategies and delivering training to staff. All candidates must have the Right to Work in the UK.

DBS checks apply. The role aligns with Coventry SEND priorities and values, and offers a supportive, collaborative environment

Qualifications

• Qualified teacher status is required.
• Successful teaching experience within Early Years is essential.
• A secure knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage and child development.
• A good understanding of best practice in teaching children with SEND.
• Ability to develop strong partnerships with professionals, families and colleagues.

Responsibilities

• Support schools and settings in meeting the special educational needs of children aged 0 to 5 years.
• Model and coach strategies and deliver training to schools and settings.
• Collaborate with families and professionals to tailor support for SEND children.
• Work as part of the SEND Early Years team on continuous service improvement.

Skills

Qualified teacher status

Early Years teaching experience

EYFS knowledge

SEND best practice

Partnerships with families

Job description

Salary Range: UPS + SEN allowance. Permanent term time only role.

In line with our One Coventry Values, we want to ensure that our communities are represented across our workforce. A vital part of this is ensuring we are a truly inclusive organisation that encourages diversity in all respects, including diversity of thinking. We particularly welcome applicants from minority ethnic, LGBT+, disabled and neurodiverse communities to make a real difference to our residents so that equity and respect remains at the heart of everything we do.

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.

The Coventry Special Educational Needs & Disabilities (SEND) Support Service exists to deliver the aspirational challenge set to us by young people with SEND and their families: ‘To Lift the Cloud of Limitation and enable them to enjoy an ordinary life’.

We are a creative, connected and forward-thinking service. Together with our families and partners in schools, settings, the NHS and third sector, we have driven change that has pushed us to the cutting edge of SEND. This includes embedding co-production across all areas of service delivery, investing in our SEND workforce, and pioneering new initiatives such as the award-nominated 'Together We Can' partnership group to engage Early Years children and their families and 'My Support Plan', a family-centred approach to understanding children's strengths and needs and tailoring their support.

When Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) completed a Local Area inspection of Coventry in October 2019, they commended our “genuine passion and commitment to get things right for children and young people with SEND and their families”; our respect for the “lived experiences of children and young people with SEND and their parents” and the “strong partnership between school settings and education service providers, with a high level of buy-back of specialist services”.

The SEND Early Years Team consists of specialist teachers, specialist practitioners, portage workers, HLTAs and complex communication specialists who provide intervention and support for children with complex special educational needs in early years from birth to 5 both in the home and early years settings

What is the job role?

We are looking to appoint an outstanding and experienced early years teacher to join the SEND Early Years team. This is a permanent, full-time term time only role.

You will support schools, settings and families in meeting the special educational needs of children aged 0 to 5 years old. The role is varied and will include providing support for children on your caseload through modelling and coaching of strategies and delivering training to schools and settings.

All candidates must have the Right to Work in the UK. We are currently not offering sponsorship for this role.

This post is exempted under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and as such appointment to this post will be conditional upon the receipt of a satisfactory response to a check of police records via Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS).

Who are we looking for?

You will have:

• Qualified teacher status
• Successful teaching experience within Early Years
• A secure knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage and child development
• A good understanding of best practice in teaching children with SEND
• The ability to develop strong partnerships with professionals, families and colleagues

Interview date(s): Classroom observation w/b 12 October, successful candidates will be invited for interview 21st October 2026

Guaranteed Interview Scheme - As part of our commitment to inclusion, we offer guaranteed interviews for specific groups of people. To qualify, you'll need to meet the minimum requirements for the role and identify with one of the below criteria:

• Members of the Armed Forces and veterans
• Are currently in care or have previously been in care
• If you consider yourself to be disabled or if you have a long-term health condition

We recognise that you might use AI tools to help with your application. While these tools can be useful, please make sure that all information you provide about your experience, skills, and qualifications is accurate. What matters most to us is hearing about your experience and the achievements that truly reflect you!

About Coventry

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.

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Salary Range
UPS + SEN allowance. Permanent term time only role.