---
title: SEND practice for school staff
url: https://thestudyguild.com/subjects/special-educational-needs/send-in-schools
type: category
published: 2026-08-13
last_reviewed: 2026-08-13
reviewed_by: sarah-okeke
publisher: The Study Guild
---

# SEND practice for school staff

What SEND training for UK school staff can honestly cover, why it is not QTS or the NPQ for SENCOs, and how to tell those products apart.

## What should SEND training for school staff actually cover?

The Code of Practice as a working document, EHCP literacy, working under a designated SENCO, and a hard stop at diagnosis. Awareness of autism or ADHD is not a school job on its own. If the provider cannot say who marks case work, and the certificate implies the SENCO award, treat it as marketing.


Our [SEND Practice for School Staff](/programmes/send-practice-for-schools) programme marks a
school-facing case. For family coaching outside school employment, see
[ADHD Coaching Practitioner](/programmes/adhd-coaching-practitioner) — still not diagnosis.


Sources:
- [SEND code of practice: 0 to 25 years](https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/send-code-of-practice-0-to-25) — GOV.UK

## Is school-staff SEND training the same as the SENCO qualification?

No. SENCOs in maintained mainstream schools must be qualified teachers, and new SENCOs must complete the NPQ for SENCOs within three years of appointment. Support-staff practice is a different product. A diploma that prints SENCO in the title without those requirements is flattening a statutory role into a search term.


| Goal | Buy this | Skip this |
|---|---|---|
| Designated SENCO | QTS plus the NPQ for SENCOs | Online autism diploma |
| Better TA or pastoral practice | [SEND Practice for School Staff](/programmes/send-practice-for-schools) | Diagnostic practitioner branding |
| Clinical diagnosis | Clinical training | Any awareness course |


Sources:
- [SENCO national professional qualification](https://www.gov.uk/guidance/special-educational-needs-co-ordinator-senco-national-professional-qualification) — GOV.UK

## Who should skip SEND training for school staff?

Anyone whose spec named QTS or the NPQ for SENCOs. Anyone planning to diagnose. Anyone seeking a private practitioner identity with no school employer. Anyone who wanted to coach adults and thought a school course would cover it. Awareness remains useful for parents when it stays in that lane.


Skip also if you are not in a school and wanted a career-change identity. See the parent
[special educational needs hub](/subjects/special-educational-needs).


The designated SENCO is a school-employed leadership role with a mandatory qualification. Support-staff practice is a different product. An awareness diploma that prints SENCO in the title is flattening a statutory job into a search term. Read the person spec, then buy only that.

## Common questions

**Can this make me a SENCO?**

No. The mandatory qualification is the NPQ for SENCOs, and SENCOs must be qualified teachers.

**Can I diagnose after this?**

No. Diagnosis is clinical. School support does not create that right.

---

Source: https://thestudyguild.com/subjects/special-educational-needs/send-in-schools · The Study Guild