School Leader’s Guide to SEND

Lynn How is an educational consultant with over 20 years of experience in primary teaching and school leadership. As a former Assistant Head and current SENCO, she brings unique insight from both leadership and specialist perspectives. Her popular Facebook group, 'The Sweary SENCo,' connects over 9,000 professionals whose real-world experiences inform her practical approach. Lynn holds an MA in Education, FCCT, NASENCO and NPQH qualifications. She writes for various educational publications and shares resources on staff and pupil wellbeing at her award-winning blog, positiveyoungmind.com.

This is a book written from the heart – and with deep professional wisdom by Lynn.As the highly anticipated follow-up to Lynn How’s inspirational first book, Starting Out as a Primary SENCo: Finding your first post, the first year and beyond, this latest work feels like both a continuation and a widening of the conversation – from the SENDCo’s desk to the whole leadership table!In The School Leader’s Guide to SEND, Lynn reminds us that inclusion is not a policy, a checklist or a bolt on, but a daily act of love, courage and moral purpose. She speaks directly to the hearts of school leadership: doing the right thing for children, especially when the system makes that hard.What shines through every page for me is Lynn’s unwavering belief that every child belongs, and that schools thrive when compassion, clarity and consistency walk hand in hand, sentiments that are close to my own heart. This is grounded, honest and utterly practical. Lynn understands the pressures leaders face (as she has been one), yet refuses to let those pressures lower our ambition for children who need us most.This book will steady you, challenge you and remind you why you came into education, the greatest job in the world, in the first place. If you want to build a school where inclusion is lived, where SEND is everyone’s responsibility and love is translated into action – this is essential reading.

• Introduction Part 1 Knowledge and understanding of SEND 1 Barriers to school leader’s SEND knowledge and understanding 2 The foundations of an inclusive school 3 Universal provision 4 Key classroom strategies 5 When to seek specialist support 6 Working with your local authority 7 Supporting general SEND needs 8 An overview of common areas of need in school Part 2 Whole-school strategies 9 Pulling together: making inclusion work 10 Whole-school mindset: gratitude, kindness and inclusive attitudes 11 Whole-school universal provision 12 Supporting SEMH across the school 13 Improving attendance 14 Nurture provision 15 Systems, processes and assistive technology 16 Formal processes: paperwork, assessment and accountability Part 3 Building relationships with key staff 17 Strengthening SEND through relationships 18 Building a relationship with your SENDCo 19 Best practice for working with LSAs 20 Supporting your SENDCo to lead 21 Working with parents and governors Part 4 Inspection, accountability and school improvement 22 The ‘O’ word: where SEND fits with Ofsted 23 School self-evaluation and improvement Part 5 Case studies Final reflections References Index