Decision details

To consider the report of Cabinet Member for Children and Learning detailing resourced provision for Cantell School.

To approve the opening of a resourced provision at Cantell School for 10 pupils with moderate learning difficulties with associated speech, language and communication needs and/or Autism from April 2025 as set out in the statutory notice, as set out in Appendix 1 of this report.

The current position is that there are no placements at Great Oaks school and no current place to expand.  The pupils identified for the provision all made preferences for special school and there is a requirement to meet this request, the creation of this provision will allow appropriate provision to be put in place at a local level.

The level of pupils coming through with a severe learning difficulty has increase and this has affected the ability for children with moderate learning difficulties to access Great Oaks school.  Developing other provision options such as the one at Cantell School allows parent choice and for children’s needs to be better met in mainstream settings.

1.  Do nothing. The impact of this would be vast.

•  we will have an increase in appeals for Great Oaks School.  This will potentially push Great Oaks to further increase class sizes and therefore find they begin to be incompatible for some more severe needs due to continue reduction in physical space.

•  These pupils will end up in mainstream school potentially not having their needs met.  If the children were all placed separately, they would all require an increase in their provision which would become more costly over time.

•  The parents would request high cost placements as an alternative and there would be an increase pressure on the High needs budget and the school travel budget.

2.  Increase space at Great Oaks.  They have already converted office spaces and had temporary units placed on the school site.  They are also split over three sites.  Further increasing would further reduce the outside space accessible to the children in the school.  To spread the school over an additional site has an impact on the senior leader oversight in the school and would cost more to implement in order to fill this gap.

3.  Under statutory notice procedures Cabinet may approve the proposals as set out in the Notice, approve with minor modifications (e.g implementation date – and subject to further consultation) or to approve with limited statutory conditions (planning permission if required). In the alternative, Cabinet may reject the proposals as published and commission alternative proposals to be consulted upon.