SENCO
The Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator — a designated teacher at a school responsible for coordinating the provision made for pupils with special educational needs, a role created and regulated by statutory instrument.
Independent editorial summary — not the official statute text. Read the official version on legislation.gov.uk.
Every mainstream school in England is required to have a named person responsible for overseeing its special educational needs provision. The Education (Special Educational Needs Co-ordinators) (England) Regulations 2008, which 'come into force on 1st September 2009', define the role in the Regulations' interpretation section: '"the SENCO", in relation to a relevant school, means the person who has been designated by the governing body to be the special educational needs co-ordinator for the school.'
The role is not purely administrative — the Regulations require the governing body to ensure the SENCO holds prescribed qualifications and experience, and the SENCO's responsibilities extend to advising other teachers on differentiated teaching methods for pupils with special educational needs, contributing to staff training, and preparing information the school must publish about its SEN provision. The Regulations were made under section 317(3B) of the Education Act 1996, placing the SENCO's core duties on a statutory footing rather than leaving them to informal school practice.
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Official sources
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