The Education Training Foundation's (ETF) Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities (SEND) programme has been fully funded by the Department for Education (DfE). Access a range of live online sessions for SEND, access resources from our Centres for Excellence and apply for Peer Reviews.
SEND Sessions
Looking for more SEND courses? Find more courses on our Learning Platform.
Centres for Excellence (CfE)
Our flagship Centres for Excellence offer free support to leaders, managers and practitioners, as will our employer-led events.
Peer Reviews
Apply for a free college (peer) review of your SEND provision. This is offered by ETF’s Centres for Excellence in SEND.
Specialist Status in SEND (SSSEND)
The Specialist Status in SEND (SSSEND) validates current expert knowledge, skills, and behaviours within educational settings in the further education and skills sector.
Universal SEND Services
ETF is a strategic partner in the Universal SEND Services programme, having joined forces with nasen (National Association for Special Educational Needs) Delivered through the Whole School SEND consortium, the programme aims to offer joined up CPD for everyone working across the education sector to create a seamless experience for our learners with SEND.
Online SEND CPD learning units
You might also like to access our new 20 minute online units on a range of topical themes including safety and belonging; language and communication and social, emotional and mental health.
Resources
RARPA (Recognising and Recording Progress and Achievement) is a structured approach designed to enhance non-accredited learning for learners with special educational needs and disabilities. It comprises five key stages to personalize learning goals, facilitate progress tracking, and improve individual outcomes, ensuring that education is tailored to meet diverse learner needs.
This resource has been developed for the Education Training Foundation by Natspec to support providers who are currently – or who plan to be – working with learners with profound and multiple learning difficulties (PMLD).
Developing Profound and multiple learning disability (PMLD) provision in the FE and Skills sector
Employer voice
We are delighted to announce we are continuing with our ’employer spokes’ which complement our Centres for Excellence in SEND. The FE providers outlined below will continue to bring the employer voice right to the fore with employer-led activities which showcase the benefits of employing learners with SEND and having a diverse workforce.
The FE providers are:
- Dynamic Training
- Hampshire County Council
- London South East Colleges
- Luminate Group
Check the ETF course booking website to register for employer-led events.
Find and join your local SEND employment forum
NDTi is supporting Local Authorities to establish and develop SEND employment forums as well as administrating and monitoring Section 14 grants to support them with this programme. Contact your NDTi regional lead to get more information about your local forum and how to join.
A decent job can lead to a happy life
Having high aspirations for employment from the earliest years for our learners with SEND is important. In the webinar, A decent job can lead to a happy life, organisations across the Education Sector come together to explain why and to signpost you to the support available. In the webinar you’ll hear from DFN’s Project SEARCH, nasen and Whole School SEND, base (British Association for Supported Employment) and ETF’s Centre for Excellence in SEND (Community).
Why diversifying your workforce is good for business
Hear directly from a range of employers on how employing young people with special educational needs and disabilities has improved their businesses.
The young people benefit but so do the whole workforce and their customers, and of course, it’s the right thing to do!
Access to work
Access to work is a Government scheme to support people who are disabled or have a physical or mental health condition to be able to undertake their work. A grant can enable the purchase of special equipment, adaptations or support worker services.
This Access to Work new process presentation, created by City College Norwich, Centre for Excellence in SEND (community) explains the processes required when claiming Access to Work funding, as at the time of creation October 2020.
Professional development
Do take a look at our wide range of courses, many of them relevant to those supporting learners with SEND, together with our bespoke SEND offer.
Visit the News and Events page for the latest course and event updates. Are you a Society for Education and Training (SET) member? If so you’ll have access to professional development articles and webinars that cover a whole range of topics to help you support learners with SEND.
Join the SEND conversation on social media: #SENDinFE