Respective responsibilities
The provider The legal responsibilities for disabled children and children with SEN lie with the responsible body (Equality Act duties) or the appropriate authority (Children and Families Act duties). In both cases this is the governing body for a maintained school, including a maintained nursery school, and the proprietor, that is the owner or the management committee, of a private, voluntary or independent nursery.
The manager The manager or head of the setting has responsibility for the day-to-day management of all aspects of the setting’s work, including work with children with SEN. The manager agrees policies with the provider; works closely with the SENCO on the implementation of SEN and disability policies; and has an important role in enabling the SENCO to meet their responsibilities.
The SENCO The SENCO works closely with the manager and with all practitioners in the setting; has responsibility for the day-to-day operation of the setting’s SEN policy, and for coordinating provision across the setting; and for supporting colleagues in all aspects of their work with children with SEN.
All practitioners In addition to the setting’s manager and the SEN coordinator (SENCO) all members of staff have responsibilities to disabled children and children with SEN and need to understand these and the setting’s approach to identifying and meeting SEN. Where a child is identified as having SEN, the Code of Practice envisages that the individual practitioner, usually the child’s key person, will lead the engagement with the child and the child’s parents, with the support of the SENCO, and remains responsible for working with the child on a daily basis.
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