A SEND Case Officer on Funding Gaps and Outcomes for Children

In this blog, you will learn:

• About the challenges schools face in balancing funding, resources and rising levels of need when supporting pupils with SEND, according to a SEND Case Officer.
• How this SEND Case Officer thinks securing the right support or placement can create meaningful change for children and families.
• How to find and apply for the best SEND Case Officer jobs.

When it comes to securing the right support and driving meaningful, lasting change, the impact of SEND professionals is hard to ignore. SEND Case Officers play a crucial role in ensuring children and young people receive the provision they need to access education and reach their full potential. Without this support, children with SEND may lack appropriate resources or face significant barriers to learning.

We recently spoke to a SEND Case Officer about his experience working across both school and local authority settings. Having previously worked as a Learning Support Assistant and EHCP Coordinator, this individual brings a well-rounded view of the system.

Throughout the interview, this SEND Case Officer explores the importance of balancing funding, resources and rising levels of need to create life-changing outcomes for children with SEND and their families.

Tell us about your career journey so far and your current role

After completing my degree in English Language and Literature in 2018, I didn’t know what I wanted to do next. I wasn’t drawn to teaching and like many people at that stage, the process of applying for graduate jobs felt quite demoralising.

After a while, a friend of mine told me about his experience working as a Learning Support Assistant through an agency. I signed up, only planning to do it for a few months while I pursued other jobs. 8 years later, I’m still working in the education sector.

I eventually joined the school where they deployed me on a full-time basis as a Learning Support Assistant. My SENCO at the time mentored me and helped me develop. She was the one who alerted me that a job had come up as an EHCP Coordinator at my second school in a new setting.

Despite the job title, this role was functionally a deputy SENCO position. The experience helped build my leadership skills and confidence in a new environment, without the training wheels.

After a couple of years in this role, someone contacted me about a SEND Caseworker role. The salary was a significant step up and it seemed like a great opportunity. As someone who wasn’t interested in pursuing Qualified Teacher Status, I felt that my earning potential and opportunities for progression had reached their peak in my current position.

The conversation turned my head and a few months later, I secured a full-time role as a SEND Case Officer at a London local authority.

My current role is going well, but it was a huge learning curve to begin with and it definitely takes some perseverance to get through. The level of communication is very high and it demands a lot of self-organisation. In my first year, I relied on my colleagues for support. I’m happy to say that, 20 months in, I feel confident in what I’m doing day-to-day.

How did you know you wanted to become a SEND Case Officer?

To be honest, I didn’t know much about the role before I was initially approached. The salary and benefits were immediately appealing, but I would say the key thing was knowing there was another progression path for me.

I felt stuck in my previous role and realised that, sooner or later, I would have to acquire Qualified Teacher Status in order to progress. While I love being in education, it’s never been my intention to be a classroom Teacher. When I learned more about what the role of a SEND Case Officer entails, it became clear that I would have new opportunities.

What do you find most rewarding about your role as a SEND Case Officer? Is there a particular moment in your career that stands out as especially meaningful?

It’s a methodical role, with much of your day-to-day work shaped by statutory processes and timelines. It can be challenging to keep sight of the children at the heart of what you're doing.

The moments when this pays off are when you secure a positive outcome that has an immediate, measurable difference. I would say this mostly involves securing a specialist placement for a child who is struggling in a mainstream setting.

Often, these children will have been waiting years for a space. It takes a lot of work and collaboration with the existing school to get there.

A previous Caseworker had handed over one such case to me; a child had been in a mainstream school since nursery, despite presenting as almost entirely self-directed and non-verbal. When a placement was finally secured on the final day of term, both the SENCO and the parents were in tears on the phone.

Do you think mainstream settings are currently equipped to meet the government's plans to improve inclusion and accessibility?

I think we have to listen to our schools as much as possible and I would say the response from them is unanimously ‘no.’ In terms of bodies in a room, EHCP top-up funding rarely equates to realistic staffing costs.

Beyond the level of need increasing exponentially, it is my view that there is not nearly enough emphasis on SEND in all Teacher training routes. Even when a child has appropriate levels of funding and resources available, Teachers often lack meaningful equipment to deliver provision.

Parents sometimes mistakenly believe that an EHCP entitles a child to one-to-one adult support. Often, schools end up having to manage this expectation, even though it's not realistic or appropriate.

Reform in the SEND sector continues to be a huge topic of discussion. How have things changed or progressed in the SEND sector over the past 12 months and where do you see it heading?

It’s all been building up to the Schools White Paper and now here we are. I’ve witnessed a number of trials and new document pilot schemes leading up to this and everything seems to be pointing towards greater synchronisation between boroughs. I think this is a positive step.

EHCPs changing is probably the biggest question mark. I think Individual Support Plans (ISPs) and a cluster model are largely positive in terms of reducing waiting times and decision load. If schools can implement these effectively and early, I think there will be a lot of positives.

It will be a challenging transition for families whose children fall into the middle ground of being suitable for mainstream education but struggling to access learning. They will likely feel that the legal protections they have for their children are less secure.

How do you keep up-to-date with changes in the SEND industry?

The local authority I work for is quite collaborative within its education team and we regularly receive updates across different professional groups.

Educational Psychologists and advisory Teachers are great at keeping us up to date with best practices, especially since some of us don't have firsthand teaching experience. We also have regular briefings and bulletins within the local authority about SEND policy.

What reforms do you hope to see in the future?

Reforms to legislation and funding models that empower mainstream settings to take on more challenging cases are positive. Despite this, they cannot paper over the fact that there is a significant unmet need for specialist placements relative to the number of available spaces.

It’s not realistic to implement changes without also building a significant number of new specialist placements across the country.

Can you share an example of a challenging situation you’ve faced in your SEND career and how you resolved it?

I would say most of the biggest challenges in my career have involved situations where I felt I was not equipped to support a child in need, most notably when an issue arose due to the child’s mental health.

While we are trained to support children with mental health difficulties, situations in which a child is at immediate risk of self-harm are really challenging, particularly if the child is not already accessing some kind of support.

In these moments, it’s imperative to remain calm and show empathy. In education, your top priority is always keeping children safe. I have, sadly, dealt with children threatening to seriously harm themselves on a number of occasions in the past. I have had to rely on the trust I built with them over a long period of time to talk them down and seek additional adult help.

What's the most valuable lesson you’ve learnt in your career so far?

This might be quite generic but I’ve learned that everyone has to find their own way of operating. There are standards and expectations you can’t deviate from in terms of professionalism, but to be secure in your role, you have to find a way to make it your own.

The first 12 months in any role, when you feel like you don’t have a clue what you’re doing, are the most important. I certainly felt out of my depth as a SEND Case Officer to begin with, but making mistakes is part of learning. If you persevere and ask for help, you will get there.

What’s your vision for the future of SEND services?

It’s hard to predict exactly how everything will play out. Assuming the incoming model is as expected, I think cluster models will be a really positive experience for all professionals and schools involved. I think it will be a good method for sharing good practice.

All schools, regardless of reputation, have something to learn from each other and I am sure that collaborating like this will be positive.

Although this isn't an education issue, we know something needs to be done to increase Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) capacity. A diagnosis isn’t always the answer, but young people who need this service face overwhelming waiting lists and barriers to access. The system needs a major rethink and significantly more funding.

Do you have any tips or advice for anyone considering a career in SEND provision or aspiring to become a SEND Case Officer?

It’s a great option for someone who is not interested in progressing in education through Teacher training. That isn’t to say the route isn’t for current Teachers as well; a number of former Teachers are on my team.

In my experience, when you clearly communicate your strengths, SEND teams are more likely to support your growth in the role, even if your past positions were more junior. There’s no reason why even a Learning Support Assistant shouldn’t apply for a position.

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