ABSTRACT
Special Educational Needs Co-ordinators (SENCOs) play a major role in the implementation of the Code of Practice (DfE, 1994) which informs the way in which schools support pupils with special educational needs. Research shows that responding to the requirements of the Code has not been without its problems for SENCOs. Surveys (Evans et al., 1996; Lewis et al., 1996; DfEE, 1997) indicate that SENCOs feel they are required to carry out their duties with insufficient time and resources and that their teacher colleagues have an inadequate understanding of the Code and its implications for their work in the classroom. Evans et al. (1996) also found SENCOs were most satisfied with their role where they received full support from their senior management team (SMT) for the implementation of the Code and a whole school approach to special educational needs (SENs). This chapter describes an approach to the improvement of SEN systems which attempted to address many of these difficulties.
