Finding Special Educational Jobs in the UK

Special Education Needs (SEN) jobs have been in high demand lately, attracting many passionate individuals who enjoy working with children and wish to make a difference in the world to pursue teaching positions. As such, finding opportunities in the sector is easier than it has ever been. Almost all of the jobs sites you can find online will be able to provide a plethora of special education needs vacancies, and we'll try our best to isolate some of them for you in this article, just to make the process a bit less tedious.

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Where can I find Special Education vacancies in the UK?

In current times, online platforms have become pivotal when looking for new vacancies. Sites like Indeed and LinkedIn host thousands of SEN vacancies across the UK, easily accessible via the search queries ‘special needs', ‘special education' and ‘special education teacher'. By utilising search filters, it becomes even easier to isolate entry-level positions or volunteering work in the sector, useful for building up references and experience for further employment.

Senploy specialises in connecting you, the jobseeker, with SEN job opportunities tailored to your needs, based on your location. You can easily register and start browsing here. In addition, Senploy provides further helpful resources for any SEN jobseekers.

It might even be helpful to look up and find education vacancies in the UK as well, as they can also provide necessary experience and serve as a step towards the SEN job you want.

However, what does one need to be a special needs teacher in the UK?

Contrary to popular belief, not all positions require you to hold a teaching certification. Oftentimes, these positions are available to teachers-in-training and people who want to switch their careers towards teaching. It is simply the matter of looking hard enough and know what you're looking for, which is why we're here. There are some more technical aspects to getting a job like this and prior research is always pivotal to making the right career choice and succeeding at it.

Can foreigners teach in the UK?

To work as a full-on teacher in the UK, you need the Qualified teacher status (QTS). The UK Government website says that foreign teachers who have qualified outside of the UK can still work as teachers within the UK for 4 years without attaining QTS. International students can normally apply and work towards a PGCE (Postgraduate Certificate in Education) or a QTS so long as they have high enough scores on their English knowledge tests, such as TOEFL or IELTS. Mastery of the English language is pivotal, as it is the means by which a teacher in the UK will deliver their lectures.

As such, so long as a foreigner can prove their credentials and that they match the requirements for the job they're applying for, they should have no trouble teaching in the UK. There are some hoops to go through, such as having your criminal records checked (DBS check), but most employees promise to assist you in the process. Some university courses also require you to produce some additional paperwork to prove your good conduct in your home country, but those depend on which course you are applying for.

Which teaching roles are most in-demand in the UK?

UCAS Teacher Training, the main method of applying for teaching courses in the UK, has a very handy function of letting you know which subjects are in demand, whether it be for primary or secondary school. UCAS lists Chemistry, Computer science, English, Geography, Languages, Mathematics and Physics as secondary subjects in demand. English and Mathematics among them seem to be the most prominent when browsing through job sites.

If you are just starting out your SEN career, you will likely be working as a teaching assistant, helping students, for example on the autistic spectrum, to tackle subjects, providing support with any needs they might have. Most teaching jobs will thus require you to possess a GCSE in English and Mathematics at 4 (C) or equivalent, as those are the most important subjects within the curriculum. Teaching assistants will always be in high demand, especially as more government funding is gradually becoming available to support SEN in all schools across the country.

The best resource sites in Special Education needs

Both job searching and looking for useful and well-researched resources are arduous tasks. Simply looking up ‘SEN resources' can yield mixed results, although many still helpful. Senploy, however, seeks to supply and maintain a strong selection of special education resources, both relating to looking for jobs, as well as more specialised ones relating to special needs.

The UK government site and the UK NHS site can help direct parents towards SEN professionals. For example, the government site lets parents know to contact their school's SENCO or SEN co-ordinator, if they suspect their child might have special education needs. They are also informative on the legal topics relating to special education and can help in getting any extra help parents need.

The government website also includes legal information relating to what is required of SEND teachers, which is a useful read as well, if you want to gather as much knowledge as possible.

Conclusion

All in all, there are a plethora of SEN vacancies available to apply online. The trick is to research your options and decide on a realistic path you wish to follow, depending on whether you already have experience or teaching qualifications, or you are just starting out and want to redirect your career.

Click here to search our current SEN Jobs