The posting
Job Description
Organisation: Leicestershire County Council
Work Location: County Hall Glenfield LE3 8RA
Salary: £65,109 -71,631 per annum ( Pro rata for part time)
Working Hours: 37 Hours per week
Contract Type: Fixed term for (24 Months) Or Secondment for (24 Months) With Managers permission
Closing Date: 26th November2026
Interview Date(s): TBC 9th Dec 2026
Make an impact. Shape the future of Post-16 SEND in Leicestershire.
We are looking for an experienced, ambitious and collaborative leader to join Leicestershire’s SENA Service at an exciting point in its development.
This Service Manager role will have a particular leadership focus on our Post-16 SENA Team, providing senior oversight of our work with young people as they move through further education and towards adulthood. You will work closely and collaboratively with colleges, Post-16 providers, education, health, social care and other partners to strengthen pathways and support effective transitions for young people with SEND.
A key priority will be ensuring that preparation for adulthood is at the heart of our work, supporting a stronger focus on young people's aspirations, independence, employment, community participation and adult lives, alongside the effective delivery of our statutory EHCP responsibilities.
You may bring substantial experience from SENA or statutory SEND services, or you may come from a strong Post-16 background, including further education, transitions and preparation for adulthood. What matters is your ability to lead complex services, inspire people, build strong partnerships and maintain a clear focus on improving outcomes for young people.
Why join us?
Leicestershire’s SENA Service is diverse, ambitious, innovative, creative and forward-thinking. We want people who bring ideas, challenge us to improve and work collaboratively to find better solutions.
Partnership and co-production are central to how we work. We work closely with our Parent Carer Forum, SEND Hub, and our Strategic Young People’s Group, ensuring that children, young people and families have a meaningful voice in shaping our services.
Most importantly, the children and young people of Leicestershire matter to us. We want young people with SEND to have high aspirations for their future and to be supported to move into adulthood with the greatest possible opportunity for independence, employment, relationships, community participation and a fulfilling adult life.
This two-year opportunity gives you enough time to make a real impact, build relationships across the Post-16 sector, lead meaningful change and see the results of your work. It also provides an excellent opportunity to broaden your senior leadership experience and take the next step in your career.
About the Role
- Provide strategic leadership of the Post-16 SENA Team.
- Drive improvements in Post-16 EHCPs, annual reviews, transitions, and preparation for adulthood.
- Build effective partnerships with colleges and Post-16 providers to improve outcomes for young people with SEND.
- Lead and develop staff, promoting high standards, accountability, and performance.
- Ensure young people's aspirations and adult life outcomes are central to decision-making.
- Work across education, health, and social care to support successful transitions to adulthood.
- Contribute to SEND sufficiency, commissioning, High Needs funding, and budget management.
- Oversee complex cases, mediation, tribunals, and complaints.
- Champion co-production and the voice of young people and their families.
An enhanced DBS with barred list check is required for this post.
For information on our approach to the recruitment of ex-offenders, please see our policy statement
About You
To apply for this post, you must be able to evidence in your application how you meet the following criteria:
- A management qualification, evidence of continued learning and development, and demonstrable, fully evidenced experience of developing, managing and delivering an effective service relevant to this level of responsibility.
- Significant relevant experience within SEND, Post-16 education or a closely related service for children and young people, together with strong knowledge and understanding of SEND legislation, statutory guidance, national policy and the legislative and governance framework associated with SEND.
- Substantial senior management and leadership experience within a complex service, including managing staff and other resources, strategic thinking, and successfully leading significant and demanding programmes of organisational and service change.
- Proven experience of developing and delivering high-quality services in accordance with statutory requirements and strategic organisational priorities, including strong performance management and reporting and the ability to research, analyse and use information and data to inform service improvement, recommendations and service planning.
- Excellent communication, partnership, influencing and negotiation skills, including significant experience of working with and influencing partners to deliver change, communicating complex information effectively to different audiences and building effective relationships at all levels.
- Strong experience and understanding of resource management, including High Needs funding and commissioning requirements, with a successful track record of planning and delivering change within agreed timescales and budgets and securing organisational efficiencies where possible.
- Proven ability to operate effectively within a complex and demanding environment, including managing a heavy workload and competing priorities, identifying and managing risk and interdependencies, solving complex problems, appropriately challenging established practice, extensive experience of managing staff and other resources. Motivating others and demonstrating a clear commitment to improving outcomes for children and young people.
In addition, we also expect you to share our commitment to our values and to delivering accessible and inclusive services which meet the needs of all of our residents. You will be asked to demonstrate your understanding of these commitments as part of the selection process.
Reasonable adjustments will be considered for applicants with a disability. We are a Disability Confident Employer.
Please note: If you are appointed to this role on a fixed-term or internal secondment basis, you may later be offered a permanent appointment to the role, should the opportunity become available. Any such arrangements will be subject to organisational requirements and the relevant policy conditions being met.
Interested in Flexible Working?
We are open to discussions about flexible working, which may include part time working, job sharing, term-time working, flexible start and finish times, and hybrid working, depending on the requirements of the role and the service. If you would like to discuss the possible flexible working options that might be applicable to this role, please contact the person named below.
For more information or an informal discussion, please contact:
Michelle White Head of Service - SEND & Children with Disabilities
Email: [email protected]
How to Apply
At Leicestershire County Council we’re looking for top talent from all walks of life. Whoever you are, wherever you’re from, and whatever your background - we care about what you bring to our organisation, not just what’s on your CV. That’s why we’ve designed a recruitment process that’s fair, accessible, and focused on potential. And with benefits that support people at every age and stage of life, we make sure you can thrive - both personally and professionally.
If you share our passion to make a difference for the people of Leicestershire, we’d love to hear from you. Click the apply button to submit your application, ensuring that you upload a supporting statement that explains how you meet the criteria listed in the ‘About You’ section above. Without this information, we won’t be able to assess your suitability for the role, and your application will be rejected. For tips on how to write your statement, see the How to Apply section on our career site.
We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible.
If you have any technical issues when trying to apply for this post or you want to request an application pack in an alternative format, please contact our Employee Service Centre by telephoning 0300 3030222 (select option 2) or raising a ticket via our online portal: https://emss.org.uk/support.
By applying for this post, you agree to our Terms and Conditions.
About Us
About Leicestershire County Council
At Leicestershire County Council, we're committed to making a real difference in people's lives. Our aim is to work with communities and partners to deliver public services that make Leicestershire the best possible place to live and work for everyone.
Our employees play a key role in supporting this goal and helping us deliver the vital services we provide to the people of Leicestershire. Whether you're starting your career or looking for your next challenge, you'll find a place with us where your ideas are valued, and your work has purpose.
For further information on what it’s like to work for us and the benefits we offer, please refer to the following:
Our Recruitment Process Our Organisational Values Our Employee Benefits Working for Us
