Jun
SEND
The SENCO: The Most Undervalued Member of Staff?
Education Adviser at SFE, Claire Steele, discusses the multifaceted role of a SENCO, offering advice on building SEND confidence through training and community…
How broad are your shoulders?
Most SENCOs I speak to have exceptionally wide ones – and for good reason. The moment you step into the role, the weight of responsibility grows, the visibility of your decisions increases, and the demands placed upon you seem to multiply overnight.
The SENCO role is wonderfully rewarding, but it is also complex, strategic, and emotionally demanding. In many schools it is still undertaken alongside a full or part-time teaching commitment, requiring SENCOs to balance competing priorities with limited time and relentless expectations.
The Multifaceted Role of the SENCO
A SENCO is part leader, part educator, part administrator, part advocate – and often the quiet problem-solver holding countless threads together.
On any given day, you may be:
1. A Strategic Leader
- Shaping SEND policy and practice across the school
- Ensuring statutory duties under the SEND Code of Practice are met
- Reporting to senior leadership, governors, and local authorities
- Monitoring the effectiveness of provision and the progress of pupils with SEND
2. A Coordinator of Provision
- Ensuring adaptations, interventions and reasonable adjustments are implemented
- Working with teachers, TAs, and support staff to embed inclusive practice
- Leading the graduated approach – Assess, Plan, Do, Review – so every pupil receives timely, evidence-based support
3. A Relentless Organiser
- Managing reviews, annual EHCP meetings, multi‑agency visits, assessments, and deadlines
- Keeping accurate records, data, and communications
- Quality assuring interventions and tracking impact
4. A Key Point of Contact for Parents and Carers
Perhaps the most emotionally complex part of the job.
You are often the person who:
- explains the SEND system
- supports parents through assessments, referrals and work with external agencies
- helps families navigate uncertainty and worry
- celebrates progress and small wins that matter enormously
5. A Champion for Staff Development
Teachers cannot implement what they do not understand.
SENCOs:
- identify staff training needs
- develop CPD programmes
- lead discussions around inclusion, reasonable adjustments, and classroom strategies
- support ECTs, support staff, and wider teams to feel confident meeting diverse needs
The most important part of the role – and the reason many SENCOs love their job – is to work closely with teachers and support staff to assess pupil need, identify barriers, and ensure that the right strategies are in place to help each child make small, meaningful, measurable steps forward.
The Graduated Approach in Action
It’s about putting the graduated approach – Assess, Plan, Do, Review – which sits at the heart of effective SEND practice, into action. It ensures that support is not reactive, but purposeful, collaborative, and regularly reviewed.
SENCOs lead this cycle, guiding teachers and support staff to assess the child’s needs, plan strategies and interventions, implement support with fidelity and review what is working (and what isn’t). This reflective cycle is essential for progress -especially for learners with complex or overlapping needs.
Supporting Early Identification
Having straightforward systems that make it easy for all staff to follow when they first become concerned about a child ensures that everyone is acting in the child’s best interest.
To support this, we have created a free downloadable ‘SEND cause for concern flowchart’ for you to share with staff to clarify these early identification procedures. I hope you find it useful.
Building SEND Confidence Through Training and Community
One enjoyable part of my role at Services For Education is delivering the face-to-face days that form part of the NPQ for SENCOs. Here, I get to meet and discuss all things SEND with a group of hard-working, passionate (aspiring) SENCOs from a range of backgrounds, with a range of experiences, and share our thoughts and ideas to become more secure and confident in what we do and explore the realities of SEND leadership.
These conversations remind me how passionately SENCOs care about getting provision right. They also remind me how stretched many feel, and how difficult it can be to find time for meaningful CPD.
That need for staff training is vast – and the current White Paper is clear that this training should be for all staff – yet it can be difficult to get staff together and deliver training that is interesting, informative and to the point.
Accessible Training That Works for Busy Schools
We understand that every cohort – and every school – is different. Needs shift year on year, and SENCOs must support everything from cognition and learning needs, ASD, and ADHD to SEMH, sensory difficulties, physical needs, and communication challenges.
To help with this, we developed this new range of short, online courses addressing common and emerging SEND profiles, giving staff confidence to understand and support learners with a range of conditions they are likely to encounter in school. They are:
- Ideal for TA meetings
- Perfect for ECT induction
- Clear, factual, and full of practical classroom strategies
- Designed to strengthen everyday inclusive practice
We also provide CPD training on key topics like restrictive interventions and can deliver tailored training and consultancy bespoke to the needs of your school – just get in touch, and we will be able to put something together that meets your needs.
If you found this blog useful, you may also be interested in reading the following blogs:
Dec
Mar
SEND Transitions: How Schools Can Better Support Students Beyond the Classroom [GUEST BLOG]
Nicole Sherwood discusses practical ways to support pupils with SEND as they move into further education,...
Nov
Brand-New SEND Courses and Resources Launched:
How Services For Education Can Support You
Whether you are an experienced SENCO or brand new to the role, we’ve recently launched a range of online courses and resources to support you, including our new SEND Specialisms Range – providing opportunities for flexible, self-paced learning and whole-school upskilling. We have also launched a variety of free SEND resources and CPD courses covering important topics like safeguarding, restrictive interventions and behaviour management.
Alternatively, if you would like to discuss how we can support your team, please get in touch – our mission is to help you feel confident, equipped, and valued in your role.
Explore Our New Offer Here About the Author
Claire Steele - Adviser, Services For Education
With over 20 years of experience in primary education, Claire Steele is a respected and committed school leader who has worked across a diverse range of schools and multi-academy trusts.
Her previous roles include Assistant Principal, Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL), SENCo, and Senior Mental Health and Wellbeing Lead. She has also worked extensively with partners to support the delivery of a wide range of National Professional Qualifications (NPQs). Claire also holds the NPQSL and NPQLTD.
Claire is deeply passionate about creating safe, inclusive, and nurturing school environments, where the well-being of pupils is at the heart of practice. She brings her extensive knowledge, dedication, and enthusiasm to Services For Education, supporting schools in embedding effective and compassionate safeguarding and SEND practices at every level.
As part of the team of advisers at Services For Education, Claire champions SEND and equality, ensuring these values remain central to all aspects of her work. Most recently, she has developed the newly launched SEND offer from Services For Education. She also delivers high-quality safeguarding training and conducts comprehensive safeguarding audits in schools.
