SEND Early Years Specialist Practitioner

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, portage workers 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.

We value diverse perspectives and experiences and are striving to create an inclusive workplace culture that is accepting of all and is free from discrimination and bias.

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.

To provide rapid response to schools and settings for early years children with significant special educational needs.

To work in partnership with staff in schools/settings to support children with complex needs through modelling and coaching.

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).

We are looking for an enthusiastic, highly motivated person who has an inclusive approach to special educational needs and who can help the children in Coventry achieve their full potential.

You must have recent experience of Early Years practice in schools/settings and have a good understanding of the EYFS framework and the SEN Code of Practice. Experience of working with young children with SEND and be dedicated to helping children make progress.

You will support settings and schools to overcome barriers to learning and improve outcomes for children.

We are looking for an applicant with:

• Experience in Early Years.
• Excellent organisational skills.
• Ability to communicate effectively
• Work on your own initiative
• A proactive and positive approach.
• Be creative, dynamic and a good communicator.
• Experience of working with children who have social, emotional or behavioural needs
• The ability to develop strong partnerships with professionals, families and colleagues
• Skills and expertise to develop inclusive practice for children with SEND.

Please note the salary advertised will be pro-rata to TTO weeks worked.

For further information/informal discussion please call Debs Schindler on 024 7678 8400

For full details on the application process, please read the attached document on our jobs page labelled 'Coventry City Council Application Process'

Interview date: 14/15 July 2026 for a September start.

If you need help or support completing your application, please visit our accessibility page to learn how we can assist you.

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

For full details on the application process, please read the attached document on our jobs page labelled 'Coventry City Council Application Process'.

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 who you are!

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.

If you join us, we will provide a fantastic rewards and benefits package - to find out more please visit https://www.coventry.gov.uk/council-vacancies