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South East England and South London
The role of WSS is to support school in prioritising SEN. The expertise lies within the system and by sharing best practice, working with others and building on existing strengths, we want to unlock the knowledge for the benefit of all children and their families. We want to ensure that children and young people, along with their parents/carers, are at the centre of any provision.
In the South East and South London, we want to work in partnership with all stakeholders to ensure that SEND is seen as part of the wider school improvement agenda and not an add on. We would like to invite all leaders and practitioners to get in contact and work with us to develop a collaborative, meaningful and strong community of practice that directly impacts the outcomes for children and young people with SEND across our region.
Local authorities in this region
Bexley, Brighton and Hove, Bromley, Croydon, East Sussex, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Kent, Kingston upon Thames, Lambeth, Lewisham, Medway, Merton, Portsmouth, Richmond, Royal Greenwich, Southampton, Southwark, Surrey, Sutton, Wandsworth, West Sussex.
Meet your Regional SEND Leads
Regional Lead
Amelie is the Interim Executive Headteacher and Head of Inclusion at the Gipsy Hill Federation of schools in South East London. She was a Lead Author on Teacher Handbook: SEND.
Amelie is an experienced teacher and school leader, including as a SENCO, deputy headteacher and headteacher. Prior to moving into Senior Leadership positions, Amelie worked as an Advanced Skills Teacher both in primary and secondary school. She is passionate about CPD with a particular focus on building opportunities to develop reflective practice. Amelie has worked with a range of leadership teams to develop school-wide systems that enable inclusive practices for children and young people with SEND as well as support the delivery of high quality inclusive teaching for all.
Amelie Thompson
Deputy Regional Lead
Tina Harvey has been the Headteacher at Perseid School in Merton for more than 25 years and is the joint lead of the Merton Special Training Association, a provider of specialist training and outreach. Tina has been a teacher for more than 30 years and, for three years until Summer 2018, was also the Executive Head of a local primary school. Tina holds a M.Ed in Childhood Autism from Birmingham University and has a particular interest in leadership at all levels, coaching teachers throughout their leadership journey and the teaching of PSHE.
Tina Harvey OBE
Deputy Regional Lead
Clare is Head of Southampton Inclusion Partnership and Outreach Service, based at Springwell Special School in Southampton. She has been a senior leader and teacher across a range of mainstream and special schools, as well as pupil referral units. She holds an MSc in Specific Learning Difficulties from the University of Southampton and an MA in Special Needs and Inclusion from the University of Winchester. Clare established the Outreach Service in her current role, which supports pupils with SEND and behavioural needs across primary and secondary schools and was rated as a strength of the city’s provision by the local area SEND inspection in 2017. She is also a Specialist Leader of Education specialising in SEND and Behaviour and works for HISP Teaching School Hub as their SEND Lead.
