Senior Programme Manager for Additional Needs and Disabilities

This salary range for this role is £68,774 - £75,583 per annum, based on a 36 hour working week.

This roless is offered as 12 month fixed term contract to lead our Childrens, Families and Lifelong Learning Directorate with focused programmes of work around Additional Needs and Disabilities.

This role offers hybrid working with an expectation that at least two days per week will be spent in locations across Surrey. This includes one day a week with the team in who are based in our Woking office, with another spent in Surrey dependent on business requirements.

Rewards and Benefits:

• 26 days' holiday (prorated for part time staff), rising to 28 days after 2 years' service and 30 days after 5 years' service.
• Buy up to 10 days of additional annual leave
• Up to 5 days of carer's leave per year
• An extensive Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) supporting health and wellbeing
• A generous local government salary related pension
• Lifestyle discounts including gym, travel, shopping and many more
• 2 paid volunteering days
• Learning and development hub where you can access a wealth of resources
• Paternity, adoption and dependents leave

About Us:

Our guiding principle, 'No One Left Behind', is at the heart of everything we do in Surrey. It shapes our priority objectives and the way we deliver services. The Children, Families and Lifelong Learning (CFLL) Directorate is committed to investing in internal transformation teams. These teams are crucial in driving high-impact changes in Children's Social Care (CSC) and Additional Needs and Disabilities (AND). They will also spearhead various projects aimed at improving service delivery and efficiency, ensuring we stay true to our guiding principle.

The transformation teams are dedicated to shaping, driving, and facilitating sustainable change and improvement for children in Surrey. By partnering with, challenging, and supporting our stakeholders, we strive to achieve better outcomes for children and young people, against a challenging financial context.

We are looking for transformation professionals with programme management experience in Additional Needs and Disabilities, to lead our Directorate wide programme of works.

Our Additional Needs and Disabilities Transformation Team work directly with service leads and operational teams both within Surrey County Council Education and Lifelong Learning but also across our partners including health commissioners and providers, education settings and the voluntary and community sector. The AND Transformation Programme works to deliver the full programme of improvements outlined in our AND Partnership Improvement Plan following our Ofsted inspection in 2023, and those objectives set out in our AND Partnership Strategy, as well as the conditions of our Safety Valve agreement.

To support you in your overall insight into the current position within Surrey please see below some helpful links for further reading and context:

Surrey Safety Valve Agreement - Surrey safety valve agreement updated

Surrey Local Area SEND Partnership Improvement Plan - Local Area SEND Strategic Improvement Plan

Surrey Inclusion and Additional Needs Partnership Strategy Response to Local Area SEND Inspection Report - Improvement Plan Surrey Local Offer

About the Role:

As a Senior Programme Manager for AND, you'll be part of a dynamic team where you'll lead strategic transformation initiatives that drive continuous improvement and operational excellence. Your expertise and understanding of the Additional Needs and Disabilities legislative context, landscape, and of key stakeholders will be crucial in shaping and driving our programme activities.

You'll collaborate with colleagues across the council, including programme Senior Responsible Owners, relevant Board members, and wider system stakeholders, ensuring our activities are well-informed and aligned with the council's long-term strategic vision. You will also be required to attend Board meetings to provide strategic updates.

You'll oversee and manage substantial resource including staff supporting with programme related activities. You will ensure that effective project and programme governance is in place, so that if challenges arise, you'll be well positioned to take appropriate corrective actions to resolve issues, maintain progress and ensure successful outcomes are achieved.

This role requires agility, flexibility, and the ability to embed yourself quickly and credibly into new and often complex areas of work involving multiple and varied stakeholders, therefore the ability to build and maintain effective relationships built on high support and challenge will be crucial to your success.

Shortlisting Criteria:

To be considered for shortlisting for this position, your application will clearly evidence the following:

• Appropriate professional programme management qualification or equivalent experience operating at a senior level.
• Substantial experience of leading and implementing complex, multifaceted transformation programmes.
• Substantial knowledge and expertise within Children's Services and / or Education and / or Health, ideally within the SEND arena.
• Strong influencing and negotiation skills
• Demonstrable skills and experience of working with senior stakeholders and partnership working across different organisations.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to evaluate problems, assess risk and identify/ suggest solutions

To apply you will need to upload your CV and answer the following questions:

• Using a recent example please tell us about the key skills and experience you have in relation to complex programme management and large-scale change.
• Please provide an example of a transformation project you led, detailing the challenges you faced, any strategies you used, and the measurable outcomes achieved?
• Please tell us about a transformation programme you are most proud of and why.
• Given what you know of the well documented challenges in the SEND space what do you see as the top priorities/ areas focus?

Contact Us:

Please contact us for any questions relating to role requirements, flexible working requests, transferable skills or barriers to employment.

For an informal discussion about the role please email

The job advert closes at 23:59 on Sunday the 23rd of March 2025.

Interviews are planned for the 1st or 2nd April 2025 and will be held in person at out Woking office.

An enhanced DBS 'Disclosure and Barring Service' check for regulated activity (formerly known as CRB) and the Children's and Adults' Barred List checks will be required for this role.

Surrey has both urban and rural areas. You will be expected to have a valid driving licence to drive in the UK and access to a vehicle and be willing to travel across a wide geographical area to attend stakeholder meetings as required. Reasonable adjustments where needed will be made for successful applicants who have a disability or long-term health condition to enable them to fulfill the requirements of the job.

We look forward to receiving your application, please click on the apply online button below to submit.

Our Values

Our values are as important as our abilities and shape who we are as an organisation. Discover more about our values.

Before submitting your application, we recommend you read the job description. Our Life at Surrey handbook provides insights of the culture at Surrey and how as a valued employee, you can help shape our Council.

Our Commitment

Surrey County Council is proud to be a Disability Confident Employer. A guaranteed interview will be offered to all disabled applicants where:

The candidate has evidenced the minimum criteria for the role through their application
The candidate has chosen to share that they have a disability on the application form
Our application form and onboarding process will provide an opportunity to request any reasonable adjustments for the interview and/or the role.

We want to be an inclusive and diverse employer reflecting the community we serve and particularly welcome applications from all underrepresented groups.