What is a SENCo? Role and Responsibilities

If your child has special educational needs or disabilities (SEND), the SENCo is likely the most important person in their school you haven't met yet. The SENCo plays a central role in ensuring children with additional needs get the support they're entitled to - but many parents aren't sure who the SENCo is, what they do, or how to get the most out of working with them. This guide explains everything you need to know.

What Does SENCo Stand For?

SENCo stands for Special Educational Needs Coordinator. You may also see it written as SENCO (without the lowercase 'o'), but both refer to the same role. In some schools, particularly newer academies, you might hear the term "Inclusion Lead" or "Inclusion Manager" - these roles often encompass the SENCo's responsibilities plus broader inclusion duties.

Every maintained school and academy in England is legally required to have a designated SENCo. This requirement comes from the Children and Families Act 2014 and the SEND Code of Practice 2015, which together form the legal framework for SEN provision in schools.

The SENCo's Legal Duties

The SEND Code of Practice sets out specific responsibilities for the SENCo. These aren't optional extras - they're legal requirements that every school must fulfil:

• Overseeing the day-to-day operation of the school's SEN policy
• Coordinating provision for children with SEN, ensuring support is in place and effective
• Liaising with parents of children with SEN, keeping them informed and involved in decisions
• Advising and supporting teachers on how to differentiate teaching and manage SEN in the classroom
• Liaising with external agencies - educational psychologists, speech and language therapists, occupational therapists, CAMHS, and the local authority
• Contributing to staff training so that all teachers and teaching assistants understand SEN and can support children effectively
• Maintaining the SEN register - the school's record of all children identified as having SEN
• Coordinating annual reviews for children with Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs)
• Monitoring the effectiveness of SEN provision and adjusting it when it's not working

Qualifications

Since 2009, all new SENCos have been required to hold (or be working towards) the National Award in Special Educational Needs Coordination - a postgraduate-level qualification. This means the SENCo should have specialist training beyond general teaching qualifications. From September 2024, the National Award is being replaced by a new National Professional Qualification for SENCos (NPQ for SENCos), which strengthens the training requirement further.

The SENCo must be a qualified teacher. Schools cannot appoint an unqualified member of staff (such as a teaching assistant) as the SENCo, though teaching assistants often support SEN provision under the SENCo's direction.

What the SENCo Actually Does Day to Day

The legal duties listed above give you the framework, but the reality of a SENCo's daily work is far more varied and human. Here's what the role looks like in practice:

Identification and Assessment

The SENCo leads the process of identifying children who may have SEN. This might involve:

• Reviewing concerns raised by class teachers about a child's progress, behaviour, or emotional wellbeing
• Observing children in the classroom to understand their needs
• Carrying out or arranging assessments (such as reading age tests, cognitive ability screening, or speech and language assessments)
• Analysing data to spot patterns - for example, children who aren't making expected progress despite quality-first teaching
• Gathering information from parents about a child's needs, history, and what works at home

Planning and Coordinating Support

Once a child's needs are identified, the SENCo coordinates the support. This typically involves:

• Writing or overseeing SEN Support Plans (sometimes called Individual Education Plans or IEPs) that set out specific targets, strategies, and the support the child will receive
• Working with class teachers to ensure classroom teaching is adapted to meet the child's needs - this is called "quality-first teaching" or "differentiation"
• Deploying teaching assistants effectively, ensuring they're providing targeted support rather than just sitting next to a child
• Arranging interventions - structured programmes designed to address specific needs (e.g., phonics catch-up, social skills groups, speech and language programmes)
• Commissioning external specialists when in-school support isn't sufficient

Working with Families

The best SENCos see parents as genuine partners. In practice, this means:

• Having open, honest conversations about a child's needs - not minimising difficulties or using jargon
• Explaining what support is being provided and why
• Listening to parents' knowledge of their child and incorporating it into planning
• Providing regular updates, not just at formal review meetings
• Supporting parents through the EHCP process if a statutory assessment is needed
• Signposting families to external support services, parent groups, and information

Managing EHCPs

For children with Education, Health and Care Plans, the SENCo has specific responsibilities:

• Ensuring the provision outlined in the EHCP is actually being delivered
• Coordinating the annual review - gathering reports from all professionals involved, inviting parents, chairing the meeting, and submitting paperwork to the local authority
• Monitoring progress against EHCP outcomes and recommending changes when needed
• Liaising with the local authority about amendments to the plan

How to Contact Your School's SENCo

If you think your child may have SEN, or if you want to discuss existing support, here's how to get in touch:

• Ask the class teacher first. If you have concerns about your child's progress or behaviour, raise them with the class teacher. They can then involve the SENCo if appropriate, or you can ask them directly for the SENCo's contact details.
• Contact the school office. Simply phone the school office and ask to speak with the SENCo or arrange a meeting. You don't need to go through any formal process to request a conversation.
• Check the school website. Most schools name their SENCo on their website, often on the "SEN" or "Inclusion" page, along with the school's SEN Information Report.
• Email directly. Many SENCos have a direct email address or a specific SEN email (e.g., [email protected]).

You do not need a diagnosis or any paperwork to speak to the SENCo. If you're worried about your child, that's reason enough to make contact.

What to Expect from a Meeting with the SENCo

Your first meeting with the SENCo will typically involve:

• Sharing concerns: You'll be asked what you've noticed at home and what concerns you have. Be specific - rather than "she's struggling with reading," say "she's in Year 3 but still guessing at words and can't read unfamiliar words independently."
• Hearing the school's perspective: The SENCo will share what teachers have observed in school, any assessment data, and what support is already in place.
• Agreeing next steps: This might be further assessment, starting an intervention, putting a support plan in place, or referring to an external professional. You should leave the meeting knowing exactly what will happen next and when.
• Setting a review date: Good practice is to set a date to review progress - typically six to eight weeks after any new support begins.

When the SENCo Role Works Well - and When It Doesn't

Signs of a Good SENCo

• They know your child as an individual, not just a name on the SEN register
• They communicate proactively, not just when you chase them
• They explain things in plain language, avoiding jargon
• They advocate for your child within the school - for example, ensuring teachers implement recommended strategies
• They're honest about what the school can and can't provide
• They have dedicated time for the SENCo role (not squeezing it into gaps between full-time teaching)

Red Flags

• The SENCo is consistently unavailable or hard to reach
• Support plans are generic rather than tailored to your child's specific needs
• The SENCo can't explain what provision is in place or how it's helping
• Progress reviews don't happen, or there's no evidence that strategies are being adjusted when they're not working
• You feel dismissed or patronised when raising concerns
• The school seems to resist putting support in place or seeking external help

What If You're Not Happy with SEN Support?

If you feel your child isn't getting the support they need, you have several options:

• Raise it with the SENCo directly. Be specific about what's not working and what you'd like to change.
• Escalate to the head teacher. If the SENCo isn't responsive, the head teacher is ultimately responsible for SEN provision in the school.
• Contact the school's SEN governor. Every governing body should have a named governor responsible for SEN.
• Seek independent advice. Your local SENDIASS (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Information, Advice and Support Service) provides free, impartial advice. Every local authority has one.
• Request an EHCP assessment. If your child's needs aren't being met at SEN Support level, you can request a statutory needs assessment from the local authority, which could lead to an EHCP with legally enforceable provision.

The SENCo is there to help your child succeed - and working collaboratively with them is almost always the best starting point. But if collaboration isn't working, don't hesitate to escalate. Your child's education is too important to leave to chance.