Are you passionate about supporting children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND)? Do you want to make a real difference in helping families and communities access the right support at the earliest opportunity? Join Durham County Council’s Children’s Services and be at the heart of shaping and delivering a Local Offer that truly meets the needs of our communities.
At Durham County Council, we are dedicated to supporting children, young people, and their families through our SEND and Inclusion Service. As part of the Early Help, Inclusion, and Vulnerable Children teams, we work collaboratively to ensure everyone can access the right services and opportunities.
In this pivotal role, you will:
1. Lead the day-to-day management, coordination, and delivery of the SEND Local Offer, ensuring its content is relevant, accessible, and meets statutory requirements.
2. Transform how information is presented on the Local Offer by aligning it with wider system change programs, ensuring it remains dynamic and responsive.
3. Work closely with families, stakeholders, and service providers to ensure the Local Offer is co-produced, reflecting the needs and aspirations of those it supports.
4. Develop innovative ways to engage and involve parents, carers, and young people in service design and delivery through partnerships like Making Changes Together Durham, Parent Carer Forums, and the Family Hub network.
5. Champion the Local Offer and advocate its use across community platforms, schools, and voluntary organizations.
WHAT WILL I NEED?
We are seeking a highly motivated and skilled individual with a Level 3 qualification in a relevant field and substantial experience working directly with children, young people, and families to achieve improved outcomes.
You will excel in fostering meaningful participation, using analytical skills and collaborating effectively with diverse partners, including schools, health, and social care professionals. You will be proficient in project management principles, be able to implement policies and organise workloads independently.
You bring excellent presentation and interpersonal skills, adept at engaging stakeholders and translating feedback into actionable improvements across digital and community platforms. Passionate about inclusivity, you are committed to co-production with children, young people, and families, ensuring their voices influence decision-making.
Your adaptability, drive for quality, innovative thinking and solution-focused approach make you a strong team player and a catalyst for positive change in SEND services.
Please refer to the attached person specification for the full criteria.
If successful, you will be required to apply for a Disclosure and Barring Service Enhanced Disclosure.
REWARDS AND BENEFITS
We offer generous rewards and benefits that are designed to help you perform at your best:
* Competitive salaries and 27 days holiday per year rising to 32 days after five years continuous local government service.
* Option to purchase up to 10 additional days annual leave per year.
* Excellent work/life balance through schemes including job sharing, compressed hours and flexi-time (allowing up to 13 flexi days per year).
* Hybrid working (home and office working).
* Excellent contributory career average Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS). Plus, top up options - Salary Sacrifice Shared Cost AVC scheme and standard AVC scheme for members of the LGPS.
* Wellbeing Portal and access to an Employee Assist Scheme.
* Wide range of learning and development opportunities including professional qualifications, coaching and mentoring.
* Employee Benefits Portal and Lifestyle Savings Scheme (discounts across a host of major retailers).
* Discounted DCC gym membership.
* Staff networks run by staff for our staff, including Race Equality and Diversity, Disability, LGBT+, Armed Forces, Carers, Menopause.
* Trade Union membership.
* A range of other salary sacrifice schemes such as car leasing.
Rewards and benefits are subject to individual terms and conditions.
HYBRID WORKING
Durham County Council currently operates a hybrid working policy where a model of 2 days in the workplace and 3 days at home/remote will apply. This model is pro-rated for part time roles and arrangements are at managers discretion, alternatively you can work all of your contracted hours within the workplace if you prefer.
EQUALITY, DIVERSITY, AND INCLUSION
We are a proud equal opportunities employer and recognise that a diverse, talented workforce brings new ideas and new perspectives, which will facilitate growth and improvements to services.
We are committed to ensuring that our employment policies and processes are fair and equitable to all. We welcome job applications from everyone, and successful candidates are considered only on their skills and ability to do the job.
As a Disability Confident Leader, we encourage applications from disabled people and provide support throughout the recruitment process.
INTERVIEWS
Interviews will be held from the 15th January 2025.
We operate a guaranteed interview scheme for applicants that can show they meet all the essential criteria and have indicated they have a disability, are a looked after young person, care leaver or a veteran.
HOW TO APPLY
In line with the County Council's Recruitment and Selection Policy, please note that we are unable to accept CVs. Applications must be submitted on-line via the Northeast Jobs portal.
Please use the ‘Person Specification’ section of your application form to demonstrate that you have the essential and where possible, desirable experience, skills, and knowledge. Candidates who do not evidence that they meet the essential qualifications and experience listed on the person specification will not be short-listed.
If you have any support needs or require assistance when applying for this role, please contact the Recruitment Team via email RecruitmentCYPS@durham.gov.uk or telephone 03000 26 27 27.
We collect personal information from you when you register with North East Jobs and make an application. Details on how we process your personal data is available in our Privacy Notice. https://www.durham.gov.uk/media/24645/Privacy-notice-human-resources/pdf/PrivacyNotice-HR.pdf
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