The SEN Practitioner: Status, Skills, and Support

The ‘SEN Practitioner’ can take many forms, from the SENCo, pastoral lead, or nurture practitioner to the teaching assistant or classroom teacher. All are essential lynchpins within the education system who provide inclusive opportunities for children with SEND. This rich, edited collection explores the range of practitioners that make up the SEN workforce and considers their skills, attributes, and needs in depth. It focuses on practitioners in a range of settings, including mainstream, special schools, and alternative provision, and provides comprehensive guidance on what each role entails. Chapters also consider the diverse needs of SEN practitioners and share perspectives from neurodivergent professionals, which thoughtfully explore how practitioners can be developed and supported themselves. Throughout, reflections and takeaways are included, to prompt readers to identify how key insights can be transferred to their own setting and practice. By drawing together chapters from a range of contexts, this book provides an essential overview of the diversity of the SEN workforce and key next steps for further training and development. It will be valuable reading for SENCos, Multi Academy Trusts, and CPD Leads, as well as students of education, inclusion, and SEND.