Building Bridges: How SEND Caseworkers Foster Strong Relationships for Inclusive Education
08 May, 20251-2 minutes
In this blog, you will learn:
- How SEND Caseworkers build strong relationships with families, schools and multi-agency teams.
- Practical strategies and approaches to education planning to help children and young people with SEND achieve long-term success.
- How to find and apply for the best SEND Case Officer jobs.
In our latest industry interview, we spoke with a SEND Caseworker about the day to day responsibilities of their role and changes in the SEND industry going forward.
In a career spanning more than 20 years, this SEND Caseworker is passionate about inclusive education and creative problem-solving. In this interview, they reflect on their career, the importance of building strong relationships and discuss how to help children and young people with SEND achieve long-term success.
Throughout this interview, you’ll discover how SEND Caseworkers navigate SEND services, coordinate complex plans for children and young people with SEND and their vision for a more inclusive education system.
Tell us about your career journey so far and your current role
I spent 23 years in primary education as a class Teacher and in school management. Having had various careers including working for the Adult Training Scheme, I decided to retrain and studied for a PGCE at Liverpool University. I have a BA(Hons) in Business Studies, a PGCE, MSc in Education Management, NPQH and was in the first cohort of the National SENCo Award. I have 8 years’ experience as a SENCO.
At the introduction of the SEND Code of Practice in 2014, I moved to be an Education Health & Care Plan Coordinator at Wirral Borough Council. As a parent of a young adult with SEND, I trained to be in the Post-16 team as at the time there were no other specialists. Recently, we have been reorganised and we have the title SEND Caseworker. This has involved taking the tribunal and mediation work out of duties.
What does a typical day as a SEND Caseworker consist of?
Case work involves liaising with schools, colleges and parents as well as young people in order to understand what you can offer or potentially offer. There is also the multi-agency aspect of the role involving communication with healthcare providers, educators and Social Workers and working within children and adult’s social care, adoption services and youth justice services.
My day as a SEND Caseworker usually starts by going through my emails as many of the messages I receive from parents are usually sent outside of office hours. From here, I can prioritise the emails that require a quick response or if they need actions to be added to the daily work list.
The next task is to make phone calls which I find to be the best way to communicate with parents, establish good working relationships and get a real sense of their problems.
My day can also be a mixture of review meetings, emergency meetings and meetings with local authority legal services. These won’t happen in a single day, but your day will be a mixture of these.
Part of my day involves compiling all the advice from different agencies and producing an EHC plan. Many authorities are starting to use methods where the EHCP is compiled by an IT system, however these still need to be scrutinised by Caseworkers to check that the information in the EHCP is appropriate for that young person.
Finally, I take time to reflect on the day and prepare the job list for the next day.
How has SEND provision changed over the past 12 months and where do you see it heading?
There has been an increase in resource places, mainly in primary settings. This is a reaction to the increase in places required rather than a planned approach to the whole of special provision including Post 16. As children progress through the stages of education, there will need to be places in secondary education and in college.
There continues to be the increased use of the independent sector leading to very high-cost placements that are out of the locality and children being educated out of their local community and away from their friends. Some of these placements can be at least five times the cost of a local placement.
If local authorities and the health service were to make long term plans based on intelligence rather than short term fixes, there would be a more coherent plan to provide for children and young people with SEND. This would depend on a government willing to make long term investment and foster a system of local placements.
The 2025 Labour government has introduced several educational and SEND reforms. How do you think Labour will impact SEND and local authorities?
The current government is looking at inclusivity as part of the solution. Large sums of money have been promised to fix the SEND crisis including capital investment in adapting school buildings for pupils with SEND. This comes at a time when schools are having problems with existing budgets, utilising their funds and making hard decisions about staffing.
I think there needs to be a major commitment to change and not just short-term fixes to the system by adding things on rather than a fully planned and cost system of education. The percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) spent on education has fallen to 3.9% from 5.5%. In other, better performing education systems they spend between 6.2 to 7.5% of GDP.
There are also issues with Teacher recruitment and retention which haven’t been addressed. Any specialist provision needs to have appropriately trained staff and a workload that is manageable. It’s a rewarding vocation, but it’s hard and you’ve got to ensure staff are able to manage otherwise.
How might SEND provision change under Labour’s government and what reforms do you hope to see in 2025?
Children are the future so I would like to see an increase in GDP spent on education. I would also like there to be a complete review of SEND looking at the culture that has developed and how it has become adversarial when the system fails to meet expectations.
I would like to see the reintroduction of early intervention centres where multi agency assessments are taken at an early age, even as young as one year old. Regular parent and multi agency reviews would be beneficial to establish if there are any needs that can be addressed and provision put in place before starting school. It’s crucial for schools to have the right provision in place from day one and for it to be regularly reviewed.
I don’t believe specialist schools should be the norm for children with SEND and that with more investment and training in Health and Social Care, we can undertake full assessments in a timely fashion.
More investment in training and recruiting Educational Psychologists is needed so they can undertake full assessments and take time working with children and young people rather than using a few tests and online interviews.
If specialist provision has to be provided, it could be worth looking at how a child can reintegrate and be included in their local school, as this should be the objective right through the system into Post 16.
How do you keep up-to-date with changes in the SEND industry?
In my role at the local authority, we have briefings on SEND and any developments. I am also an active member of an education union which has provided Continuing Professional Development and also briefings on SEND and the work of the Department for Education.
I’ve been involved in forums set up by my professional association that look at developments from the Teachers, School Managers and SEND Caseworkers perspective. There are also parent forums on the internet that are useful as they explain any developments from a parent’s viewpoint. It’s good to understand how this affects all the parties involved.
What do you find most fulfilling about your role?
What I find most fulfilling about my role is being able to find creative solutions to problems such as finding the most appropriate educational provider or blend of provision. One particular case involved a mixture of onsite learning with one provider, home tutoring and online learning to enable a young person to eventually go into Higher Education.
This young person had a difficult time in education, but with the right support, they were able to succeed and achieve their goals, which is so rewarding to see.
What challenges do you believe councils and the SEND sector will face with the new labour government?
I think one of the biggest challenges is quite simply not having enough appropriate provision to meet the increasing number of children and young people that are assessed as having SEND and an EHC plan. This ties into not having enough skilled professionals in schools to maintain the EHCP process.
Another potential challenge is the changing culture of having children being in inclusive settings rather than being excluded and placed in specialist settings that could be a long way from home.
Can you share an example of a challenging situation you’ve faced in your SEND career and how you resolved it?
Challenging situations arise when parents don’t get what they are expecting from an assessment, which can cause disaffection as parents ‘fight’ for what they think is right for their children.
In one case, a parent wanted a secondary SEMH school for their child, but when offered a mainstream placement with support, they objected. After visiting the school and seeing what was on offer and how the school looked after pupils with similar needs, they decided to give the placement a chance.
The pupil progressed to the local sixth form college and is successfully studying for their A Levels with plans to go to university. This was only achieved by having a good working relationship and personal contact with the parent.
What's the most valuable lesson you’ve learnt in your career so far?
I believe building relationships with people is the most important thing. I personally find hiding behind emails to be impersonal and can lead to misunderstandings, so I always ensure I communicate with parents and other professionals in face-to-face meetings or through phone calls.
I’ve also learnt not to take it personally when things go wrong - some situations are simply beyond your control. What matters most is knowing you did your best.
What’s your vision for the future of SEND services?
My vision for SEND would be a fully funded and integrated system of education with a complete spectrum of SEND provision mostly based in local schools. I think children should be able to move into different arrangements of provision within their school rather than be sent to another school or area. A SEND system that fully prepares young people to make a positive contribution in adult life would be great!
What advice would you give to aspiring SEND professionals?
Firstly, to be under no illusions - sometimes it can be tough, but it is really rewarding and you get a ‘real buzz’ from helping children and young people. Persevere and your rewards will come to you including the emails of praise from parents.
What were your experiences of working with Spencer Clarke Group? What are the benefits of using a recruitment agency?
Spencer Clarke Group have been very good to work with and have really looked after me, even reminding me when I have become so engrossed in my work that I have forgotten to put it in a timesheet.
Spencer Clarke Group also looks after your interests and I’m able to work flexibly and work from home. I had a sudden change in my rate of pay and the agency was able to sort this out and get the correct rate of pay within two days. If I had to deal with this as an employee, I would have had to wait several weeks for a resolution.
SCG educational psychology report
As specialists in SEND recruitment, we work alongside hundreds of Educational Psychologists throughout the UK and are mindful of the challenges they face in their ever evolving role.
After commissioning our own research from Educational Psychologists in both local authorities and private practice, we published the SCG Educational Psychology Workforce Insights Report 2024.
The report delves into trends within educational psychology, funding and resources, industry challenges, policies and legislation and the future of educational psychology.
Read the SCG Educational Psychology Workforce Insights Report 2024 here.
SEND Case Officer jobs
If you’re searching for your next SEND Case Officer job, why not take a look at the latest vacancies, or simply upload your CV to be notified when a relevant position becomes available.
Recruit SEND Case Officers
As specialist local authority SEND recruiters, we support local authorities nationwide with their temporary, interim and permanent staffing needs.
If you’re struggling to recruit, we have exclusive access to some of the most experienced SEND Case Officers in the UK.
If you’re struggling to fill a vacancy, why not get in touch with one of our team to see how we can help?
- South of the UK - Richard Shorrock
- Midlands & North of the UK - Adam Zyda
Share your experience
Every individual brings a unique set of experiences, thoughts, and insights to the table. We believe in giving a voice to a community of professionals to inspire positive change and champion reform in the SEND sector.
If you work in the SEND sector and would like to share your own personal and professional experiences, we’d love to hear from you. Perhaps you have a different perspective, could offer a fresh angle, or want to challenge assumptions.
Simply reach out to our Head of Content, Nicole Sherwood, to discuss a collaboration which makes your voice count.
Who is Spencer Clarke Group?
Established in 2017, we’re an award winning and progressive recruitment agency based in the heart of the North West. Our reputation is built on trust, expertise and an unwavering commitment to exceed expectations.
In 2024, we were named Recruitment Agency of the Year at the prestigious Recruiter Awards, an accolade we are extremely proud of.
We operate in two sectors:
In eleven specialisms:
Healthcare, Social Care & Nursing
Corporate Functions & Business Support
