DfE announces more funded places for the Autumn NPQ SENCO cohort
The DfE has announced that it is making more funded places available for the Autumn cohort which is due to start in October.
If you’ve applied for a place with us, look out for an email from our team. If you are interested in attending our Spring cohort, please email info@realtraining.co.uk to join the waitlist (*subject to eligibility).
A closer look at the NPQ SENCO qualification
The NPQ SENCO qualification has now replaced the NASENCO award as the mandatory training for SENCOs. This came into effect from September 2024 as part of the DfE’s SEND and alternative provision improvement plan.
This represents a significant change to the current SENCO training landscape and will bring the NASENCO away from being a standalone qualification, aligning it more closely with the other leadership NPQs. The Government has confirmed that the NPQ SENCO will take 18 months, plus a 3-4 month assessment window. There will still be the same three-year period to complete the training, once you have started in the role.
It’s worth noting that this means the earliest intake who will gain the new qualification will do so by August 2026 (December 2026 for anyone that needs to re-take).
The course will cover the following main areas:
- School culture
- Statutory framework
- Identification of need
- Teaching
- Behaviour
- Leading and managing provision
- Professional development
- Implementation
You can find more details in the published DfE NPQ SENCO framework or on our course page.
Is Real Training delivering the NPQ SENCO course?
We are delighted to confirm that we are offering the new NPQ SENCO course. We’ve teamed up with Teach First to bring you a flexible, blended learning course, full of practical and tangible examples, led by highly experienced tutors.
Join our SEND mailing list to be first in the know about further course dates as they are released throughout 2025.
We are continuing to offer, and see demand for our NASENCO award, although this will no longer qualify you to practice as a SENCO. Find out more on our course page.
What are the National Professional Qualifications (NPQs?)
NPQs are a set of voluntary, national qualifications designed for teachers at all levels that typically last twelve or eighteen months. In the words of the DfE, the NPQs are designed to “support teachers and leaders to develop expertise in specialist areas of teaching and school leadership.” There are currently eight NPQs, all of which have been independently reviewed by the EEF (Education Endowment Foundation).
In September 2023, the Government released a high-level framework for what the new qualification will cover. You can read the Government’s framework for the NPQ SENCO as a pdf here.
What does this mean for current, qualified SENCOs?
The Government has made it clear that it is not a requirement for existing SENCOs who have completed NASENCO to retrain (or those who were already in the role prior to 2009).
How will the NPQ SENCO be funded?
The Government has confirmed that funding for the Autumn 2024 cohort will be available for teachers and school leaders in state-funded settings in England. You can find out more on their NPQ funding page.