Overview

The ‘SEN Practitioner’ can take many forms, from the SENCo, pastoral lead, or nurture practitioner to the teaching assistant or classroom teacher. All are essential lynchpins within the education system who provide inclusive opportunities for children with SEND. This rich, edited collection explores the range of practitioners that make up the SEN workforce and considers their skills, attributes, and needs in depth. It focuses on practitioners in a range of settings, including mainstream, special schools, and alternative provision, and provides comprehensive guidance on what each role entails. Chapters also consider the diverse needs of SEN practitioners and share perspectives from neurodivergent professionals, which thoughtfully explore how practitioners can be developed and supported themselves. Throughout, reflections and takeaways are included, to prompt readers to identify how key insights can be transferred to their own setting and practice. By drawing together chapters from a range of contexts, this book provides an essential overview of the diversity of the SEN workforce and key next steps for further training and development. It will be valuable reading for SENCos, Multi Academy Trusts, and CPD Leads, as well as students of education, inclusion, and SEND.

Full Product Details

Author:   Tristan Middleton (University of Gloucestershire, UK)
Publisher:   Taylor & Francis Ltd
Imprint:   Routledge
ISBN:  

9781041034452

ISBN 10:   1041034458
Pages:   232
Publication Date:   22 June 2026
Audience:   College/higher education ,  Professional and scholarly ,  Tertiary & Higher Education ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Forthcoming
Availability:   Not yet available  
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Table of Contents

Figures and Tables Contributors Foreword – Annamarie Hassall: CEO, nasen Introduction - Tristan Middleton PART I The SEN Practitioner: Roles, Skills and Attributes 1. All Teachers are Teachers of Children with SEN: The Mainstream Class Teacher as a SEN Practitioner - Julie Wharton 2. Teaching Assistants: Developing an Effective Workforce to Support Learning - Sara Alston 3. Achieving the Best Pastoral Support: Roles, Responsibilities and Skills – Sue Soan 4. Early Years SEN Practitioners: Challenges, Opportunities and Key Take-Aways – Angela Scott 5. Alternative Provision Staff – Sarah Johnson 6. Nurture Group Practitioners – Tristan Middleton 7. The SENCo – Lynda Kay and Tristan Middleton 8. The Team Around the Child and Learners with Social Emotional and Mental Health needs - Dennis Piper PART II The SEN Practitioner: looking forwards through the experience of practitioners 9. Inclusive Classrooms: Good for Everyone, Good for Dyslexia – Julia Clouter 10. Beyond Inclusion: Recognising the Strategic Power of Autistic Educators – Simon Preston 11. Disabled Teachers, Discourses which Aid, Discourses which Hinder – Mark A. Lyn 12. Supervision for Education Practitioners in SEN – Jonathan Reid 13. Effective Pastoral Care that Supports SEND: A Support for Practitioners – Phil Jones 14. Relational Practice: A Triadic Lens for Practitioners in SEN – Lynda Kay 15. SENCo Strengths-Based Leadership: Leading Change and Flourishing Through Hope, Optimism, Self-Efficacy and Resilience – Jon Gibson 16. Leadership of School Culture to Support Practitioners: Recruitment, CPD and Relationships – Hilary MacMeekin Conclusion – Tristan Middleton Index

Reviews

""The SEN Practitioner is a must-have resource for those practitioners working with our SEND learners and those who aspire to foster more inclusive approaches in all contexts. The need to challenge and change existing school cultures to become more compassionate and inclusive (for both professionals and students) is highlighted in this comprehensive and informative book. I can highly recommend it."" - Dr Tina Rae, HCPC Registered Educational and Child Psychologist, Author and Educational Consultant ""As the societal concept of Neurodiversity rapidly emerges, this book is a timely and welcome addition for practitioners in the field of Special Educational Needs and Disabilities, enabling them to appraise how this concept may helpfully influence their role, practice and, ultimately, the provision offered to children who are neurodiverse. Through a rich range of chapters from insightful practitioners, traditional and emerging roles and practices are explored, which recontextualise and re-evaluate their juxtaposition in the ever-changing scenario that is SEND. I highly commend to all involved in the day-to-day organisation, planning and delivery of high quality education to children with additional needs."" - Professor Barry Carpenter CBE, OBE, Oxford Brookes University “This book is an invaluable resource for anyone working in education. It champions the idea that by investing in the status, skills, and support of our SEN practitioners, we are making the most direct and meaningful investment in the outcomes and futures of our children. Read it, reflect on it, and let it inspire your practice.” - Annamarie Hassall MBE, Chief Executive, nasen

""The SEN Practitioner is a must-have resource for those practitioners working with our send learners and those who aspire to foster more inclusive approaches in all contexts. The need to challenge and change existing school cultures to become more compassionate and inclusive (for both professionals and students) is highlighted in this comprehensive and informative book. I can highly recommend it."" - Dr Tina Rae, HCPC Registered Educational and Child Psychologist, Author and Educational Consultant ""As the societal concept of Neurodiversity rapidly emerges, this book is a timely and welcome addition for practitioners in the field of Special Educational Needs and Disabilities, enabling them to appraise how this concept may helpfully influence their role, practice and, ultimately, the provision offered to children who are neurodiverse. Through a rich range of chapters from insightful practitioners, traditional and emerging roles and practices are explored, which recontextualise and re-evaluate their juxtaposition in the ever-changing scenario that is SEND. I highly commend to all involved in the day-to-day organisation, planning and delivery of high quality education to children with additional needs."" - Professor Barry Carpenter CBE, OBE, Oxford Brookes University “This book is an invaluable resource for anyone working in education. It champions the idea that by investing in the status, skills, and support of our SEN practitioners, we are making the most direct and meaningful investment in the outcomes and futures of our children. Read it, reflect on it, and let it inspire your practice.” - Annamarie Hassall MBE, Chief Executive, nasen

Author Information

Tristan Middleton is Senior Lecturer in Inclusive Education at the University of Gloucestershire, UK. He is editor of the British Journal of Special Education and has a wide range of academic article publications as well as book chapters and books. Tristan is passionate about educational inclusion and the opportunities that those in Higher Education have to make a positive impact upon education practice.

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