Salary £46,142- £51,357 Per Annum | Permanent, Full time| 37 hours per week
International Sponsorship – this role is not open to international sponsorship
Job Title: Alternative Provision Lead
Job Role: Specific focus on the permanent exclusion process.
Full-time, permanent, Grade 10 £45,092 - £51,357
In Lancashire, the Alternative Provision Team work to support children and young people access a suitable education in line with the Education Act 1996, Section 19.
Lancashire County Council has a very exciting new development in the field of alternative provision. The local authority is seeking to appoint another Alternative Provision Lead to join the Inclusion Service. The successful candidate will work alongside another Alternative Provision Lead with a focus on exclusion support and the permanent exclusion process. The two Alternative Provision Leads will work in partnership but with clear roles and responsibilities aligned to medical / other support and permanent exclusion support. They will collaboratively oversee and co-ordinate a team of AP Officers and an AP Quality Assurance & Safeguarding officer to ensure suitable education is in place for children and young people across Lancashire.
This role will lead on promoting inclusion across Lancashire working in partnership with all stakeholders. The role will lead on embedding operational change working collaboratively with other LCC services such as Admissions, Attendance, Children Missing Education, The Virtual School, Children Family Wellbeing and SEND. In addition, working in partnership with all schools, including supporting commissioning Pupil Referral Units to support children and young people to access a suitable education following a period of intervention.
This post will be located within the Specialist Teaching Service team and consists of teachers, high level teaching assistants, technicians and support workers who support multiple disciplines. The service supports early years children, children and young people with sensory needs, Autistic Spectrum Condition, ADHD, physical disabilities and learning needs. The service also includes the Elective Home Education Team who provide support and guidance to families who elect home education and work in partnership with other services to ensure the child is accessing a suitable education.
Within the service structure, this post will work alongside 9 other Leads / Managers for their teams. This role is a hybrid role working mainly from home, office bases throughout Lancashire or at County Hall. There will be a requirement to travel across Lancashire to be present in schools where required and supportively challenge decision making where required and appropriate. The successful candidate will be highly self-motivated and will have autonomy to develop the role
The role will consist of:
1. Liaising with wider partners to develop and improve and embed Lancashire's integrated SEND and alternative provision system.
2. To be innovative and solution-focused when supportively challenging settings to meet the needs of children and young people on roll.
3. To chair a weekly permanent exclusion panel to ensure robust decision making is applied. Where required, to chair medical panel and ensure Section 19 medical legislation is implemented.
4. To work in partnership with the other Alternative Provision Lead to support complex cases requiring preventative or medical support to achieve their full potential.
5. To track and monitor suspensions and exclusions to offer support to schools at the earliest point required.
6. To moderate AP Officer work undertaken and provide supervision to ensure a consistent service is provided to the Pupil Referral Units and other schools.
7. To work in partnership with the AP Quality Assurance & Safeguarding Officer to ensure children are safeguarded and accessing any interim provision in place.
8. To ensure we have child and young person views at the forefront of decision making.
9. To work in partnership with our Pupil Referral Units and Pupil Admission Team to improve and support effective reintegration into a mainstream school offer where appropriate.
10. To deliver training and key messages to wider partners, settings and professionals.
We can offer :
11. Regular supervision, oversight and support with the complexity of work reaching the team.
12. A friendly and supportive team of managers to work alongside.
13. A supportive senior manager who can offer guidance and professional development in your new role.
14. Experienced staff who can offer support as you develop your role.
15. Professional development opportunities in line with service development.
This is a fantastic opportunity to join an expanding team, embed change and work in partnership to implement a new vision for alternative provision.
If you would like to discuss this opportunity further, please contact Sapphire Murray, Senior Manager, Specialist Teaching Service, Alternative Provision and Elective Home Education :Arial",sans-serif;">
Closing Date: 12pm 14th September 2025
Shortlisting Date: 18th September 2025
Proposed Interview Date: 29th September 2025
Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (as amended in 2013). If successful you will be required to apply to the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) for a 'disclosure'. Further information can be found on the 'Our Recruitment Process' tab.
You will be required to provide a car for use in connection with the duties of this post and must be insured for business use. However, we may consider you if you cannot drive because of a disability.
Please ensure you have uploaded and attached your supporting statement to evidence how you meet the criteria for the role. The panel may be unable to shortlist you for interview without this evidence.
In return Lancashire County Council offers a range of benefits, which can be found on LCC Vacancies website.
We reserve the right to close down a vacancy early, before the closing date, if we receive sufficient applications.