SEND Standard and Inclusion Lead

Hull City Council; Hull and East Yorkshire; On-site; GBP 47,000 - 50,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

LGPS pension

Leave entitlement (23 days + 8 public)

Career development

Supportive culture

Job summary

Hull City Council is seeking an experienced SEND Standards and Inclusion Lead to drive citywide improvements in SEND provision and inclusive practice. The post involves strategic leadership, coordinating cross‑agency efforts, and supporting Headteachers, Governors and SENCOs to meet statutory duties under the SEND Code of Practice and Equality Act 2010.

The role focuses on reducing escalation to statutory assessments, strengthening graduated responses, and delivering the Local Area SEND Reform

Qualifications

• Experience leading SEND standards and inclusion in educational settings.
• Proven ability to work with Headteachers, Governors and SENCOs to drive improvements.
• Knowledge of SEND reforms, Code of Practice and Equality Act 2010 is desirable.

Responsibilities

• Lead citywide approaches to improving SEND standards, inclusion and ordinarily available provision.
• Develop and evaluate improvement strategies to reduce barriers to participation and achievement.
• Provide strategic challenge and support to senior leaders and governance boards.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Stakeholder engagement

Collaboration across schools

SEND knowledge

Change management

Job description

Number of Vacancies:3Time Type:Full timeWorker Type:RegularProposed Interview Date:Wednesday, November 18, 2026Hours of Work:37Hiring Manager:Kelly HareContact Number:01482 612917Job Description Summary:3 Full Time, Permanent Positions available.Are you an experienced SEND leader with a passion for inclusion and improving outcomes for children and young people?We are seeking a dynamic and influential leader to drive improvements in SEND standards and inclusive practice across educational settings. This is a unique opportunity to shape citywide SEND provision, support the implementation of national reforms, and ensure children and young people receive the right support at the right time.As SEND Standards and Inclusion Lead, you will work collaboratively with settings and partner agencies to strengthen ordinarily available provision, improve Quality First Teaching, and embed effective graduated response approaches.You will provide strategic leadership, challenge and support to Headteachers, Trust Leaders, Governors and SENCOs, helping educational settings meet their statutory responsibilities while improving outcomes for children and young people with SEND.If the postholder requires a Standard or Enhanced DBS disclosure the candidate is required to declare full details of everything on their criminal record unless the conviction/s and/or caution/s are considered “protected” in line with filtering rules for DBS checks.For an informal discussion about the role, please contact Kelly Hare on 01482 612 917 or [e-mail] AND PURPOSETo lead the development, implementation and continuous improvement of SEND standards and inclusive practice across educational settings, ensuring that children and young people with SEND receive timely, effective support through high-quality ordinarily available provision and the graduated response.Working collaboratively with schools, academies, early years providers, post-16 settings and wider partners, the post holder will champion inclusion and support the implementation of local and national SEND reforms.The post holder will provide leadership, challenge and support to educational settings to ensure that statutory duties under the Children and Families Act 2014, SEND Code of Practice and Equality Act 2010 are consistently understood and applied, enabling needs to be met at the earliest opportunity.A key focus of the role will be reducing unnecessary escalation to statutory assessment processes and diagnostic pathways through strengthening SEND support arrangements, improving Quality First Teaching, and ensuring effective implementation of the graduated response across all educational settings.The post holder will work directly with Headteachers, Trust Leaders, SENCOs and governing bodies to improve standards of SEND provision, monitor outcomes for children and young people with SEND, and support the delivery of priorities within the Local Area SEND Reform and Improvement Plan. Through effective partnership working, performance monitoring and quality assurance activity, the post holder will promote a culture of inclusion, early intervention and accountability for outcomes across the education system.PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTABILITIES :· Lead and coordinate citywide approaches to improving SEND standards, inclusion and ordinarily available provision.· Develop, implement and evaluate improvement strategies that reduce barriers to participation, attendance and achievement for children and young people with SEND. With co-production at the centre to ensure the experiences of children, young people and families inform strategic development and service improvement.· Lead SEND inclusion audits, thematic reviews and quality assurance activity across educational settings.· Provide strategic challenge, support and advice to Headteachers, Trust Leaders, Governors and SENCOs regarding SEND provision and statutory responsibilities.· Lead SENCO networks, inclusion forums and workforce development programmes to strengthen professional practice across the education sector.· Lead, coordinate and influence multi-agency approaches through the Experts at Hand model to ensure children receive the right support at the right time.· Monitor the effectiveness of SEND Support arrangements and Graduated Response processes across educational settings.· Contribute to Area SEND inspections, self-evaluation activity and improvement planning. Including the analysis of complex performance information, trends and outcomes to identify emerging risks and opportunities for improvement.· Act as a key decision maker within SEND inclusion governance arrangements and panel processes.· Produce reports, recommendations and strategic briefings for senior leaders, governance boards and partnership groups.NC5105.SEND Standards and Inclusion LeadCompensation Grades:GRADES 10.Pay Ranges:£46,579.00 - £49,817.00Job Classifications:3- Not Politically Restricted - Designated As Not Politically Sensitive (Politically Restricted Posts), 5- Enhanced & Childrens Barring List - (Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS)), Casual - (Travel Allowance Policy), No - (Statutory Post)Benefits of Working of Hull City Council:- A competitive salary- An excellent pension through the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS)- Initially 23 days annual leave depending on length of service. You will also get eight public holidays per year, and three additional days off, one in May/August and one during the Christmas/New year period- Career development and learning experiences from a range of training courses and learning methods- Supportive and forward-thinking culture- Great career development opportunitiesPlease ensure that you complete and submit your application by midnight prior to the closing date. Please ensure that your application demonstrates how you meet the essential criteria against the person specification as listed in the job description.We are committed to increasing the diversity, equality, and inclusion within our workforce to represent the people we serve and build an environment in which everyone can feel like they belong. We encourage people from all backgrounds to apply.We adopt a ‘name blind’ approach to shortlisting. Recruiting managers will not have access to personal information, including your name and contact details, until a shortlisting decision has been made. Equality monitoring information is not accessible by recruiting managers at any stage.We reserve the right to amend the dates associated with this advert, which may include closing the advert early where required.The Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all employees and volunteers to share this commitment.Online searches, including social media, may be carried out as part of the recruitment process.