Designate Clinical Officer for SEND (0-25yr)

Job Overview
The post holder will work alongside the Head of SEND and in collaboration with a designated Local Authority. The post will provide some strategic leadership and will be responsible for quality, consistency and process for developing and agreeing the ‘health’ contributions to Education, Health and Care Plans.
The post holder will ensure the effective discharge of their responsibilities for children and young people with special educational needs or disability (SEND) in accordance with the Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice: 0 to 25 years (January 2015), which provides statutory guidance on duties, policies and procedures relating to Part 3 of the Children and Families Act 2014.
Please note this organisation does not hold a sponsorship licence, we regret to inform you that we are unable to consider applications from individuals who require sponsorship.
Main duties of the job
Aligned to a local authority footprint, the post holder will act as strategic & operational health lead in the EHC planning process and provide professional and clinical leadership and, through the Strategic Lead for Children’s Care (SEND), be a source of expertise on matters relating to SEND for the ICB, Local Authorities, healthcare providers and other local agencies and organisations.
Working for our organisation
We offer excellent employment opportunities to new and existing staff. We aim to be a model employer by embedding best HR practice and to support new ways of working.
We pride ourselves on offering good working conditions, job security, lifelong learning, fair pay and benefits, staff involvement and a balance between work and personal life.
We enjoy a forward-thinking and innovative culture, and our vision is to have healthy people, living healthy lives in healthy communities. We understand that the only way to deliver this is to have the right people with the right skills.
Here is a summary of some of the benefits and services which are on offer to staff:

• 27 days paid minimum holiday and bank holiday entitlement
• NHS pension scheme
• Sick pay policy
• Occupational health services including staff counselling services
• Flexible working and family-friendly policies
• Flexible retirement and retirement vouchers
• Health Service Discounts - offers for stores, travel, equipment etc.
  Successful candidates will be subject to a six-month probationary period.
  Detailed Job Description And Main Responsibilities
  As a successful Designated Clinical Officer for SEND, you will:
• Provide effective leadership and clear accountability for the delivery of the ICB’s functions relating to the SEND Code of Practice, within a designated council footprint and as part of a wider ICB DCO team.
• Ensure all health partners meet the requirements of the new CQC/Ofsted Joint SEND Inspection Framework. Champion SEND across multiple forums and platforms acting as an inclusive and compassionate leader.
• Manage the processes to audit and quality oversight of health contribution to EHCPs.
• Provide local connectivity to bring leadership for the delivery of the ICB’s SEND functions and related projects.
• Ensure that the following NHS values are core to all work involving SEND:
  • Working together for patients
  • Respect and dignity
  • Commitment to quality of care
  • Compassion
  • Improving lives
  • Everyone counts.
• Develop strong operational relationships with colleagues across the ICB and/or within local systems, relevant to your local area. This includes forming strong relationships with relevant local authority and voluntary sector colleagues, to support alignment of programme and project priorities.
• Work with colleagues across the ICB and/or local system to develop project delivery documentation, specific to the local delivery structures. This will include facilitating, monitoring and reporting requirements and supporting the development of standard operating procedures for new and changing service delivery.
• Ensure appropriate mechanisms to review and deliver against local governance documents, managing them through appropriate local review and approval cycles.
• Work to understand the local area, its systems and structures to identify areas where NHS SEND projects can align or integrate to deliver high-performing pathways for residents.
• Work with partners to deliver project benefits realisation.
• Participate and, where appropriate, lead the local delivery of relevant project groups (e.g. steering groups). Alongside this, you may provide routine reporting and communications material for project groups and appropriate organisation.
• Work to understand how children and their families access services to effectively create pathways of care, moving from siloed services offers.
• Deputise for the Head of SEND as required.
• Be a visible, authoritative voice of the NHS within relevant locality forums.
  Required
  The post holder will be required to develop and maintain constructive relationships with a broad range of internal and external partners including children and young people and their families, alongside the following teams and individuals:
• Through the Head of SEND, the Children’s Care Leadership Team.
• Internal ICB staff and partners across all directorates and with regard to the relevant ICB functions.
• Designated and Named Professionals for SEND, Safeguarding and Looked After Children (LAC).
• All health care providers, specifically those responsible for providing key services and support to children and young people with SEND and their families.
• Colleagues from assigned local authorities, including members, officers and formal committees, in particular Public Health, children and adult social care, early help, education (inc. inclusion, attendance and post-16 years).
• Education and learning providers and settings (early years, mainstream and special schools/academies, enhanced resources, colleges and adult learning services).
• Voluntary and community sector services including the Parents Carer Forum.
• Service users including children, young people and their parents/carers.
• Other ICBs and local authorities as directed.
  Alongside This You Will
• Be required to present complex, contentious and sensitive information to a variety of audiences, using tact and diplomacy to staff, managers and wider stakeholder groups. This is often in difficult situations, where there may be clear barriers to acceptance across a wide range of staff.
• Be required to model a collaborative and influencing style of working, negotiating with others to persuade operational leaders of the importance of any transformation or service development.
• Maintain an open, proactive and collaborative culture supported by two-way communication with internal and external stakeholders.
• Ensure that stakeholder relationships are developed and maintained in a way that encourages cross-system interaction.
• Draft written responses to complaints, enquiries from MPs, FOIs, and other representative organisations.
• Operate effectively in a flexible and demanding environment and proactively engage with NHS staff, consultants and contractors working on a variety of topics.
• Provide leadership across a variety of external partners working on other projects and programmes within other NHS directorates as required.
• Provide and receive complex, sensitive and contentious information, presenting information to a wide range of stakeholders.
• Have the ability to deal with resulting potentially aggressive/antagonistic situations.
• Be committed to working and engaging constructively with internal and external stakeholders on a range of business-sensitive issues.
• Nurture key relationships and maintain networks internally and externally, including national networks.
• Deputise for the Head of SEND as required, expanding on knowledge, skills and experience within personal professional development.
  Analytical and judgement skills
• Contribute to the detailed information analysis of specific projects/reports requiring high levels of concentration.
• Update, maintain, organise, gather and analyse information to predict/meet future organisational and team needs by identifying best professional practice.
• Manage the monitoring and tracking of risks and issues tracking mechanism and its proactive resolution and escalation processes.
• Oversee the information management of performance, taking a lead for specific projects.
• Lead and participate in relevant meetings, drafting agendas and recording key actions and support where requested.
  Planning and organisation
• Lead the planning of SEND related projects.
• Lead the development of performance and governance frameworks relating to the discharge of the ICB functions in regard to SEND.
• Lead to short-, medium- and long-term business planning to ensure we achieve quality outcomes.
• Support other team members as and when required, potentially bringing your own skills and talents to bear to achieve the shared goal.
  Policy and service development
• Ensure that data collected is analysed, reported as appropriate, and monitor the processing of data and information.
• Review and develop existing information management systems and contribute to the development of an integrated approach to project management.
  Financial and physical resources
• Deliver against organisational objectives, achieving quality outcomes, prioritising own workload and working to tight deadlines.
• Support and inform teams on the targeting of resources, monitoring, implementing, evaluating and delivery of plans by providing high-quality information and analysis.
• Comply with the principles of Sustainability and Social Value and use resources in an efficient and responsible manner.
  Communications
• Work with members of the team and key stakeholders to investigate the causes of any variance from plan/delivery targets and contribute to the implementation of solutions.
• Ensure plans are informed by effective patient and public engagement.
• Support the development of internal and external communications where required by regular contact with the teams, stakeholders and Communications team.
• Responsible for the preparation of correspondence and complex papers, as directed by Delivery Manager.
  Information management
• Drafting reports summarising status on issues, outlining outcomes, and providing progress reports for relevant colleagues.
• Collate as required, qualitative and quantitative information and support appropriate analysis to develop robust business cases and contribute to project ‘products’.
• Compare, interpret and present data to highlight issues, risks and support decision-making.
• Place data at the heart of everything we do so that our development and implementation is rooted in the best evidence.
  Research and development
• Contribute to the development of key performance indicators for the implementation of the SEND code of practice.
• Undertake aspects of Research and Development activities, collating information, analysing and reporting findings.
• Ensure timely and accurate information analysis and reporting to management on agreed areas of work.
  Person specification
  Qualifications, Professional Training
  Essential criteria
• Nurse, Midwife, and/or Specialist Public Health Nurse registered with the NMC or registered Therapist (Occupational, Speech and Language or Physiotherapist).
• Educated to Masters level in relevant subject or equivalent level qualification or significant experience of working at a similar level in a specialist area.
• Senior level experience of working in children’s services across either health, education or children’s social care.
• Senior level experience of working in a partnership way across organisational boundaries.
• Knowledge of policy, statutory guidance and regulations relating to children’s care, including; Children Act, Children and Families Act 2014, SEND code of practice and the NHS Long Term Plan.
• Specialist understanding of how complex health needs impact on the outcomes for children and young people.
• Extensive knowledge of safeguarding.
• Experience of setting up and implementing internal processes and procedures. Experience of working in the community.
• Highly developed specialist knowledge of Special Education Needs procedures and practices, underpinned by theoretical knowledge and relevant practical experience.
• Have an appreciation of the relationship between the Department of Health, NHS England, Local Authorities, individual providers and the voluntary, community and small enterprise sector.
  Communication and Relationship Skills
  Essential criteria
• Must be able to provide and receive complex, sensitive or contentious information, negotiate with colleagues on difficult issues, and present complex and sensitive information to influential groups.
• Ability to prepare concise yet insightful communications for dissemination to colleagues and a broad range of partners as required.
• Demonstrate capability to act upon incomplete information, using experience to make inferences and make decisions.
• Clear communicator with excellent writing, data entry and presentation skills.
• Capable of delivering clear information/instructions to all partners including staff and service users.
• Able to work effectively as part of a high-performing team.
  Analytical and Judgement Skills
  Essential criteria
• Problem-solving skills and ability to respond to competing demands.
• Ability to compare complex facts and situations and develop a range of options.
• Guide decisions on difficult and contentious issues where there may be a number of courses of action.
  Planning and Organisational Skills
  Essential criteria
• Demonstrated capability to plan over short, medium and long-term timeframes and adjust plans and resource requirements accordingly.
  Other
  Essential criteria
• Must be able to use initiative to decide relevant actions and make recommendations to colleagues.
• Ability to make decisions autonomously, when required, on difficult and contentious issues where there may be a number of courses of action, working to tight and often changing timescales.
• Experience of identifying and interpreting national policy.
• Experience of researching best practice (globally, private and public sector), interpreting its relevance and processes/practices which could be implemented successfully to achieve system reform (advising on policy implementation).
• Attention to detail and accuracy.
• Reliable under pressure.
• Used to working in a busy environment.
• Adaptability, flexibility and ability to cope with uncertainty and change.