To receive an update on Special School Developments in the local area.
Minutes:
The Area Board received a presentation from Matthew Look, from the SEND & Inclusion team (Wiltshire Council). The update covered the following matters:
· An overview of the increasing demand for SEN was outlined, with it noted that the number of Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) had risen by 15% in Wiltshire from January 2023 to January 2024.
· It was noted that the High Needs Place Plan projects demand for 100 additional special school places per annum for the period 2023 – 2027 and that 90% of the new demand is for places with a primary need of Autism, Communication Needs, or Social, Emotional & Mental Health (SEMH). There is demand for primary and secondary specialist SEMH provision in West Wiltshire.
· An overview of the Westbury School Age Population was explained, with it noted that Westbury was a medium sized community area.
· The current provision in Westbury and the surrounding areas was outlined, with Westbury having a 20 place Resource Base at Westbury Infants and a 15 place Resource Base at Westbury Juniors (both Complex Needs).
· An explanation of what SEMH was provided for context as well as the current SEMH market within in Wiltshire.
· A successful bid had been made to the DfE to create a new Special Free School for SEMH in Westbury, which would deliver a new special school for 130 pupils, age 4-19, with a SEMH primary designation and would have a valued investment of £15-25million.
· The location of the future SEMH Free School was outlined as being at Gas House Farm, Bitham Park, Westbury with a timescale for completion provided and a completion date of autumn 2026 anticipated.
After the verbal update, there was time for the following questions and points to be made:
· Wiltshire Council was congratulated for the programme, with it noted that SEND is a growing situation in the education area and that this early intervention would allow for children to be educated within the county. The officer, agreed that there was a big financial incentive to get this right as well as for the experience of children and that the Council were trying to maximise provisions for children through improving the mainstream offer as well as the graduated offer of resource bases and special schools.
· Clarity was provided that Wiltshire Council doesn’t have any residential places for children and that there is a desire for children to remain in the community as much as possible.
· It was questioned what provision was available for young people leaving school and for them to live independently in the community under limited supervision, such as Fairfield College. The officer noted that whilst he was not involved directly, colleagues in other teams were working on provisions moving into adult services and looking to strengthen opportunities within the post 16 offer.
· It was clarified that the building of the Special Free School in Westbury would not impact on Westbury Infant and Junior School places and that it would mean a stronger selection of local high needs provision.
· The potential impact of Covid on SEN was mentioned, to which the officer noted that though Covid did cause a blip in the numbers, growth and demand with SEN had been happening for a while, with other factors at play such as social media pressures.
· The officer provided detail about how when considering the growth of SEN he considered birth rates and housing developments and that these were not major factors within the growth of SEN with there now being a cultural change with EHCPS and how support is offered.
· It was clarified that the DFE would design, manage and build the Special Free School.