Principal Education Welfare Officer
Berkshire
£280 - £300 per day
Education
- Tabby Summerfield
- Practice Delivery Director
Principal Education Welfare Officer (Interim)
Berkshire (Hybrid) | 3-6 month contract | £280-£300 per day
An opportunity for an experienced Principal Education Welfare Officer to provide strategic and operational leadership across school attendance and access to education, ensuring the Local Authority consistently meets its statutory duties and improves outcomes for children and young people.
The role:
You’ll lead delivery of the Local Authority’s Attendance Strategy, strengthening consistent practice across schools and services. The focus is on early intervention, inclusive approaches and effective multi-agency working to reduce persistent and severe absence, with clear oversight and quality assurance to maintain inspection-ready standards.
Key responsibilities:
- Provide leadership and oversight to ensure statutory compliance across:
- School attendance & enforcement, including Penalty Notices
- Children Missing Education (CME)
- Elective Home Education (EHE)
- Section 19 (Education Otherwise Than at School)
- Child Employment & Entertainment
- Fair Access
- Lead robust quality assurance, performance oversight and data intelligence to support continuous improvement, aligned to Ofsted ILACS expectations
- Provide strategic responsibility for the Fair Access Protocol, including leading/chairing Fair Access Panels, ensuring children without a school place are safeguarded through timely, equitable and lawful access to suitable education
- Promote corporate values and provide clear service direction, supporting senior leaders with strong and effective management of the area
Criteria:
- Significant experience in school attendance, education welfare, access to education or inclusion-related services
- Proven strategic leadership / senior operational responsibility within a Local Authority or education-related setting
- Experience developing and implementing attendance strategies, policies and/or service improvement plans
