Anna Gardiner is Deputy Director of SEND and Health at the National Children's Bureau (NCB), with strategic oversight of work across special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), children and young people's health, and local systems transformation and improvement. She is also Interim Director of the Council for Disabled Children (CDC).
Since joining NCB and CDC in 2013, Anna has worked closely with local areas across England to support their understanding and implementation of SEND and health policy, and legislation; as well as using insight into local area practice to showcase effective models. She has extensive experience of working alongside system leaders, practitioners, families and policymakers to strengthen local services and improve outcomes for children and young people.
Anna plays a key role in ensuring that national policy is informed by the realities of frontline delivery and local system leadership. She works to ensure that the sector is well-informed about forthcoming policy developments and is supported to prepare for and implement change effectively. She is particularly interested in how health, education and other services can work together to create more integrated and inclusive systems.
Prior to joining NCB, Anna worked with NHS Scotland to develop national networks for children and young people with complex health needs.