SEND Payments and Efficiency Officer

We are committed to the development of our workforce. This position is only available to applicants who already work for Surrey County Council. We thank you for your interest in our roles and would encourage you to review our vacancies which are open to all.

This full-time, permanent position has a starting salary of £36,873 per annum, based on a 36 hour working week.

We are excited to be hiring a new SEND Payments and Efficiency Officer to join our fantastic SEND Operations team based in Woking.

This role is open to hybrid working and as a team we split our time between collaborating with colleagues in the office and working from home.

Our Offer to You

• 26 days’ holiday, rising to 28 days after 2 years' service and 31 days after 5 years’ service, plus bank holidays
• Option to buy up to 10 days of additional annual leave
• A generous local government salary related pension
• Up to 5 days of carer’s leave and 2 paid volunteering days per year
• Paternity, adoption and dependents leave
• An Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support health and wellbeing
• Learning and development hub where you can access a wealth of resources
• Wellbeing and lifestyle discounts including gym, travel, and shopping
• A chance to make a real difference to the lives of our residents

About The Role

At Surrey County Council, we’re committed to providing excellent support for children and young people with SEND. Our SEND services work together to deliver timely, effective support that leads to positive outcomes. We focus on building strong, respectful relationships with families, schools, and partner organisations, with relational and restorative working practices underpinning all our work.

Our young people want adults who listen, explain things honestly, and keep them at the centre of every decision. Parents and carers value empathy, strong organisational skills, and a deep understanding of SEND legislation and diverse needs. Schools need consistent, accessible professionals who are experts in SEND and can guide them through the system with clarity and confidence.

We are looking for a skilled and motivated SEND Payments and Efficiency Officer to join our SEND Operations service.

In this role, you will help make sure SEND funding is managed accurately and effectively. Working closely with the Payments and Efficiency Lead, SEND teams and finance colleagues, you will prepare and review financial information linked to EHCPs, placements and related services. This includes supporting the reporting on high‑cost placements and ensuring information is clear, accurate and reliable.

Your key responsibilities as a Placements Coordinator will include:

• Working with colleagues to resolve data issues, improve data quality and support accurate costing of placements
• Helping to monitor activity aimed at managing costs
• Providing clear financial updates at meetings and following up actions
• Responding to queries and explaining financial information in a clear way for colleagues who may not have a finance background

This is a rewarding role where your work will have a real impact. By providing reliable data and clear analysis, you will help SEND leaders make informed and sustainable decisions, identify pressures early, and strengthen joint working between SEND and finance teams, contributing to support better outcomes for children, young people and families across Surrey.

Your Application

In order to be considered for shortlisting, your application will clearly evidence the following skills and align with our behaviours:

• Educated to A-Level or equivalent standard
• Experience of working with financial data
• Ability to apply critical analysis and exercise evaluative judgement appropriately
• Experience of contributing information to support understanding of expenditure
• Experience or willingness to learn about SEND
• High-level problem-solving skills with the capacity to devise and implement innovative solutions
• A proactive, solution-focused mindset with a commitment to equity and inclusion

An enhanced DBS ‘Disclosure and Barring Service’ check for regulated activity (formerly known as CRB) checks will be required for this role.

To apply, we request that you submit a CV and answer the following 4 questions:

1. Please tell us about your experience working with budgets or financial data, particularly where resolving issues required input from other teams. How did you overcome barriers such as competing processes or deadlines while ensuring accuracy
2. Please describe a time you analysed information to understand a problem or support a decision. What did you do, and what was the result?
3. Please give an example of how you explained financial information to colleagues without a finance background. How did you make it easy to understand?
4. Please tell us about a time you found a problem with data or processes. What did you do to fix it, and what difference did it make?

The job advert closes at 23:59 on 20.05.2026 with interviews planned to follow.

Before submitting your application, we recommend you read the job description and our Life at Surrey Handbook to get an insight into working at Surrey.

Contact Us

Please contact us for any questions relating to the role. This could be to discuss flexible working requests, transferable skills or any barriers to employment. Please contact sendoperations@surreycc.gov.uk

We look forward to receiving your application, please click on the apply online button below to submit.

Local Government Reorganisation (LGR)

Surrey County Council is undergoing Local Government Reorganisation, moving from a two-tier system to two new unitary councils in April 2027. If you are employed by Surrey on 1st April 2027, your role will transfer with current terms and conditions to one of the new organisations, supporting local devolution and greater powers for our communities.

Join our dynamic team and shape the future of local government. Make a lasting impact with innovative solutions and improved services for our community. Help us build a brighter future for our residents! Please see more information here: Information for applicants on Local Government Reorganisation - Surrey County Council.

Our Commitment

We are a disability confident employer which means if you have shared a disability on your application form and have evidenced you meet the minimum criteria, we guarantee you an interview.

Your skills and experience truly matter to us. From application to your first day, we’re committed to supporting you with any adjustments you need, we value inclusion and warmly welcome you to join and help build a workplace where everyone belongs.