Special Needs Education Coordinator (SENCO) at Ike Foundation for Autism

Ike Foundation for Autism (IFA) is a non-profit and Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) dedicated to serving all persons living with Autism in Africa and supporting them to live productive and fulfilling lives, irrespective of age, race, religion, sexual orientation, income levels or gender.  IFA was established in 2008. It is registered in Nigeria and Maryland, USA respectively. Since its inception, IFA has evolved as an important Autism voice in Africa. It collaborates with local, African, and international NGOs to promote Autism awareness and advocacy across Africa. IFA has forged strategic partnerships with a number of other Autism NGOs in West Africa and plans to build such partnerships across all the sub-regions of Africa.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Special Needs Education Coordinator (SENCO)

Location: Abuja

Job Brief

• IFA’s Early intervention centre (EIC) for children living with Autism is hiring a Special Needs education coordinator. The coordinator is expected to provide first-class support to parents, staff and pupils and ensure that the daily operational activities of the Centre are carried out for the well-being of the pupils and smooth running of the school.
• In this role, you will carry out assessments of pupils with autism and related special needs to identify needs and monitor progress – including observations in the classroom and meetings with teachers and parents (Take day-to-day responsibility for the operation of the special education needs disorder (SEND) policy and co-ordination of the provision made for individuals with SEND, working closely with staff, parents/caregivers, and other agencies)

General Responsibilities
Under the direct supervision of the director and liaison with the programs manager the EIC SEN Coordinator will:

• Advertise and promote the services at the EIC
• Develop and oversee the implementation of the Centre’s SEN strategy and policy.
• Have day-to-day responsibility for:
• Implementing SEN policy
• Co-coordinating any specific provisions for individual pupils with SEN, including those with education, health and care (EHC) plans
• Advise staff about SEN strategy and provision
• Work closely with staff, parents and local partners/agencies
• Work in partnership with parents, therapists/teaching assistants and others to provide the best service possible for the children
• Overseeing the records of all children receiving services at the centres
• Provide related professional guidance to colleagues to secure high-quality teaching for children with SEND
• Seek to develop effective ways of overcoming barriers to learning and sustaining effective teaching.
• This will be through the analysis and assessment of children’s needs, by monitoring the quality of teaching and standards of pupils’ achievements, and by setting targets for improvement.
• Collaborate with curriculum coordinators so that the learning for all children is given equal priority, and available resources are used to maximum effect.

Relationship Management Duties

• Attend parents’ meetings and gives parental meeting feedback.
• Schedule and attend Independent Educational Plan (IEP) meetings.
• Acts as a liaison between the school, the staff, the students and the parents, interpreting activities and policies and encouraging parent participation in the child’s education and school.
• Demonstrates customer relation skill necessary for working effectively and efficiently with parents.

Staff Relations:

• Supervise therapists and ensures service delivery is professional and organised, including filing systems and lines of communication.
• Plan and monitor therapist and facilitators’ schedules, programmes/methods.
• Participate in the development of staff/pupil schedules and timetables.
• Provide direction and supervision to classroom support assistants.
• Assist with the review of prospective staff invited for on-the-job assessment.
• Promote employee engagement and is responsible for welfare of staff

Pupil Relations:

• Creates and manages pupils’ programmes
• Develops and manages pupils’ schedules.
• Engages in assessments of pupils and gives a written report on the same.
• Arranges pupil events and programmes
• Ensures Pupils all round well-being is maintained always.

Administrative Duties:

• Prepare, update and archive student records for all school activities.
• Updates and archives standardised processes.
• Review and proofread all internal and external reports, including weekly reports.
• Work with the programs manager to prepare staff rotations and ensure staff duties are carried out accordingly.
• Bring all operational matters including maintenance, purchases, and upkeep to the attention of the Administrative Team.
• Prepare and send a weekly report of activities at the end of each week to the director.
• Be familiar with the main health and safety issues specific to the school and how they relate to pupils, staff, visitors and contractors and other stakeholders.
• Hold meetings with team members to promote best practices and provide updates

Requirement and Skills

•  Bachelor's Degree in Psychology, Special Needs Education, Occupational Therapy, Social Work or other relevant fields of study.
• Possess at least 5 years of practical experience working with children living with ASD and related special needs.
• Candidates with ABA certification are highly advised to apply.
• Languages Required: English

Salary Range
N80,000 - N100,000 monthly.

Application Closing Date
31st October, 2022.

How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates should send their CV to: [email protected] using the Job Title as the subject of the mail.

Note: Only shortlisted applicants will be contacted.