Deputy Designated Clinical Officer for SEND
Job Description
Job summary
NHS Coventry & Warwickshire ICB and NHS Herefordshire & Worcestershire ICB operate as a cluster with a shared management team.
We are recruiting four enthusiastic and self-motivated DDCOs to support both ICBs in meeting their responsibilities for children and young people aged 0-25 with SEND, improving outcomes across our local areas
We are recruiting to four posts:
- Coventry - 1 WTE
- Herefordshire Post - 0.8 WTE (30 hours)
- Warwickshire - 1 WTE
- Worcestershire - 1 WTE
Each post holder will lead on a specific locality within the ICBs' cluster (Coventry, Warwickshire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire), while working collaboratively across the wider team to share learning and drive improvement.
This is an excellent opportunity to join a dynamic team focused on strategic commissioning and service transformation for children and young people.
Applicants must be a Registered Nurse or Allied Health Professional with strong SEND knowledge.
The role involves providing expert advice and support on children's health to families and professionals, in line with the Children and Families Act 2014 and SEND Code of Practice (0-25 years, 2015).
Candidates must work independently, use initiative, and build strong relationships. The role requires collaboration across agencies to support a whole-system approach
The ICBs recognise the valuable contribution of serving personnel, reservists, veterans, and military families, and warmly encourage applications from the armed forces community
Main duties of the job
This role will require office based working in line with the hybrid working policies as set out for each ICB, with office bases available in Coventry, Warwick, Worcester and Hereford for all staff to utilise. There will also be an expectation of close partner working, with health providers and local authorities, and so may require presence within place partner offices.
Working across the Local Area Partnership with the LA, health providers, education settings and wider partners, these roles act as a central contact for SEND health advice and support.
You will advise on cases to ensure the health needs of children and young people with SEND are met. They will act as decision-maker at High Need Panels, be the contact for appeals, support children new to the city requiring EHCP provision, liaise with specialist colleges for post-16 provision, and support ICB preparation for Ofsted/CQC SEND inspections and actions.
Developing and maintaining relationships with key stakeholders is essential. The ICB is committed to co-production with children, young people and parent carers to ensure services meet local needs.
You will remain up-to-date and respond flexibly to changing government SEND requirements and SEND frameworks, with a commitment to tackling health inequalities, improve quality of life, reduce school absences, improve mental and physical health, increase personal autonomy, increase involvement in further education and employment, independent living, and community inclusion.
About us
The NHS is a world-renowned institution and an exciting place to work, full of challenges and opportunities. We are a dynamic, forward-looking organisation, passionate about working together with our health and social care partners to ensure services are integrated, seamless and offer a high-quality patient experience. We thrive on building strong relationships patients, communities, partners and providers, and we are committed to improving outcomes for children, young people, and their families by promoting collaboration, ensuring quality and safety, and reducing inequalities in access and experience.
We provide a supportive and collaborative environment where we work with our staff to provide opportunities for you to reach your full potential and to develop a rewarding career within an exciting and evolving environment. We aim to enable our employees to achieve a positive work-life balance through a blend of collaborative workplace attendance combined with regular home working. Joining our inclusive and innovative team comes with a range of attractive benefits including
Employee Assistance programmes and access to on-line health and wellbeing support
Competitive NHS Pension Scheme
Comprehensive opportunities to learn new skills and develop your career
Generous holiday entitlement, increasing in line with service
Flexible working patterns to support work-life balance
Please note we operate a probationary period of up to 6 months for new appointments
Job responsibilities
The Deputy Designated Clinical Officer (DDCO) for Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) is a key role within the Coventry & Warwickshire and Herefordshire & Worcestershire ICB Cluster in delivering the ICBs statutory responsibilities under the Children and Families Act (2014), SEND Code of Practice (2015), and associated NHS duties. NHS Herefordshire and Worcestershire ICB is the NHS commissioning organisation working across Herefordshire and Worcestershire and NHS Coventry & Warwickshire ICB is the NHS commissioning organisation working across Coventry and Warwickshire.
The DDCO plays a key role in strengthening health contributions to SEND pathways, supporting quality assurance, improving timeliness and consistency, and ensuring the voice of children, young people, and families informs service development. An essential aspect of the roles will be the requirement to support system leadership, collaborative and partnership working, and the pro-active development of SEND improvement programmes across the ICB footprint.
While the post holders will have responsibility for a designated locality within the ICB cluster, the expectation is that close collaboration with other areas within the cluster will be a key feature of the posts, to enable a collaborative approach which delivers improvements based on cluster wide insights and shared learning.
These posts will support the commissioning and operational delivery of the ICBs responsibilities in relation to SEND across the 0-25 year age range and acts as a key resource for children and young peoples health, providing information, advice, guidance and support for families and professionals as per current legislation (Children and Families Act 2014) and statutory guideline (Special Educational Needs and Disability code of practice: 0 to 25 years 2015).
The postholders will provide clinical, operational, and advisory support to ensure high quality health input into Education, Health and Care (EHC) processes, including assessments, plans, reviews, and tribunals. They will work closely with local authorities, education settings, health providers, parent/carer forums, and voluntary sector partners to build effective relationships designed to facilitate improved outcomes for children and young people with SEND.
These posts are part of the ICBs Commissioning and Improvement Teams, supporting the commissioning of SEND services on behalf of the Coventry & Warwickshire and Herefordshire & Worcestershire ICB Cluster and the post holder will be required to work with a high degree of autonomy and work effectively with system partners, in a fast paced environment to ensure appropriate focus, development and to secure delivery of agreed elements of the Programme.
Please refer to the full Job Description for further information.
As part of your application, please disclose if you have recently been in receipt of Mutually Agreed Resignation Scheme (MARS) or Voluntary Redundancy. Please note that this information is collected solely for administrative purposes; it will not form any part of the selection process.
Person Specification
Knowledge and Skills
Essential
- Understanding of EHC processes and SEND legislation
- Ability to organise and prioritise own workload to changing and often tight deadlines
- Ability to work autonomously with minimal supervision
- Compassionate, child centred, and collaborative
- Commitment to equality, inclusion, and co production
- Personal and professional integrity and confidence
- A flexible approach to meet the varied and complex needs of the organisation
- An ability to maintain confidentiality and trust
- Professional, calm and efficient manner
- Commitment to building and sustaining high standards in all aspects of work
Desirable
- Ability to build effective working relationships across a range of health care and other organisations
- Ability to influence decisions in a complex multi-agency group
- Extensive knowledge of specialist clinical areas, such as Learning Disabilities, or other specialist areas
- Commitment to continuing professional development
- Strong negotiating and influencing skills
Qualifications
Essential
- Registered Nurse or Registered Therapist (Speech & Language Therapist / Physiotherapist / Occupational Therapist)
- Evidence of post qualifying and continuing professional development in a relevant area
Desirable
- Educated to Degree level or ...
