How much does a fractional SENCO cost?

The day rate, with the year

Outsourced or fractional SENCO cover typically costs £250–£400 per day (2026), with term-time supply cover from around £250 a day; the rate rises with seniority and the days per week commissioned. A SENCO is the Special Educational Needs Coordinator, the qualified teacher who coordinates SEN provision across a school. ‘Fractional’ just means you buy part of one rather than employing a full-timer.

The two ways schools buy it

Most quotes fall into one of two commercial models, and they are priced differently.

• Commissioned consultancy. A SEND provider supplies a SENCO for a set commitment — say one day a week — to act as a supporting or acting SENCO and run the strategic coordination. This is usually quoted as a day rate or half-day rate (around £250–£265 for a half-day on site, so roughly £400-plus for a full day at the senior end), and is bespoke to the brief.
• Term-time supply cover. A supply or contract SENCO fills a gap — for example after a mid-year departure — advertised from around £250 a day. This buys a pair of hands in the role rather than ongoing consultancy.

What moves the price

Within those ranges, four things shift the figure: the days per week you commission (more days rarely scale down per-day, but a regular commitment can); primary versus secondary (secondary briefs and larger rolls tend to sit higher); whether you want an acting SENCO doing the full role or strategic oversight only to support a non-specialist lead; and VAT — consultancy day rates are often quoted before VAT, so check whether the quote is gross or net.

Compare that against the in-house cost. A permanent SENCO sits on the main or upper pay range plus an SEN allowance (£2,787–£5,497 in England) and often a TLR payment for leadership responsibility, before on-costs. That is the benchmark a fractional rate is measured against.

The catch the price-list pages leave out

Cost-aggregator pages quote a day rate and stop. They omit the legal limit. In a maintained mainstream school or mainstream academy (including free schools), the named SENCO must be a qualified teacher working at the school (SEND Code of Practice 2015, paras 6.84–6.85). So a commissioned or outsourced SENCO can lawfully act as a supporting or acting SENCO and do the strategic coordination, but cannot be the school’s permanent designated SENCO of record. The fractional model fits best for interim cover, strategic oversight, supporting a non-specialist designated lead, or settings outside that duty.

One more rule to price in: a fractional SENCO acting as the designated SENCO must be a qualified teacher and, since 1 September 2024, achieve the NPQ SENCO within three years of appointment (the older NASENCO counts only where started before September 2024 and finished by 31 August 2027).

• See also what a SENCO actually does, what an outsourced SENCO service is and whether you can hire a part-time SENCO.

This page is general information, not clinical or legal advice.