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Guidance

Mandatory qualification for SENCOs

Information about the mandatory qualifications special educational needs co-ordinators (SENCOs) must gain within 3 years of taking up their post.

Updates to this page

From:
Department for Education
Published:
5 July 2023
Last updated:
12 September 2024
Show all updates

  1. Updated 'Transition to national professional qualification for special educational needs co-ordinators' to reflect that the NPQ is now the mandatory qualification for SENCOs, and renamed to 'Additional guidance on the mandatory requirements for SENCOs and schools'.

  2. Updated 'Transition to national professional qualification for special educational needs co-ordinators' with information about the changes to the SEND Regulations 2014. These changes will come into effect from 1 September 2024.

  3. Updated 'Transition to national professional qualification for special educational needs co-ordinators' to reflect the fact that further details of the NPQ for SENCOs are available.

  4. Updated 'Transition to national professional qualification for special educational needs co-ordinators': changed a subheading from 'Appropriate qualifications for a SENCO' to 'Requirements for SENCOs', and segmented paragraphs to clarify who the information is aimed at. Moved information about updating the page and Special Educational Needs and Disability Regulations 2014 to the top of the page.

  5. Clarified information about which qualification SENCOs starting in post in academic year 2023 to 2024 must take to meet the mandatory requirements for the role.

  6. Added information about NASENCO for the 2023 to 2024 academic year and NPQ for SENCOs for the 2024 to 2025 academic year.

  7. First published.

Applies to England

Documents

National award for special educational needs co-ordination learning outcomes

PDF, 159 KB, 9 pages

Additional guidance on the mandatory requirements for SENCOs and schools

HTML

Details

Special educational needs co-ordinators (SENCOs) lead and co-ordinate a school’s provision for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities.

The National Award in SEN co-ordination (NASENCO)  was replaced with a leadership-level SENCO national professional qualification (NPQ).

The government has amended The Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Regulations 2014 to introduce the NPQ as the mandatory SENCO qualification from 1 September 2024.

Schools and SENCOs should consult the SEND Regulations 2014 to ensure they enrol on the relevant qualification.

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