More than 250 SEND school places are hoped to be created on land in Husbands Bosworth.
Leicestershire County Council is looking to create a new SEND school in the south of the county to help fill an ever-growing need for specialist school places.
The county council has identified land it owns on Kilworth Road to cater for a specialist school and is planning engagement with the local community to give more plans on what is proposed before any application is submitted to Harborough District Council.
The planned project would be a significant investment of around £30m by the county council to deliver the much-needed school places. It would also help to save the council in the long term as the increased provision will help to reduce demand on independent SEND places.
A public event for the local community is planned on Wednesday 3rd June at the Millennium Pavilion from 3pm – 7pm for residents to find out more and ask questions on the plans.
“We’re in great need of specialist school places for Leicestershire children and many will know the strain we’re currently under.
“This is why we want to build a new, purpose-built school in the south of the county, where we’ve identified the most need. We’re just at the start of this process but our ambitions are clear on providing these places.”
Person:Councillor Charles Pugsley, cabinet member for children and families
The county council’s SEND and Inclusion Strategy identifies a significant shortfall in SEND provision across the county, and no provision in South Leicestershire.
This results in the need to either transport young people considerable distances to a suitable setting or access Independent SEND Providers or out of county provisions.
Husbands Bosworth is well located and is a sustainable option given its location and the ability to free up places elsewhere for pupils living in those areas.
Additional places provided at the school will minimise travel distance for students and reduce the county council’s current reliance on independent providers.
“We want to make the best use of land that we own where it can be used for the best possible purpose. The site we’ve identified in Husbands Bosworth is unused and ideally located to cater to the demand there is in the south.
“We’ll be speaking to residents, parishes and surrounding communities to see what they think, with our ultimate goal of submitting an application to the district council.”
Person:Councillor Pugsley
Feedback will help to shape a Statement of Community Involvement to go with any application to the planning authority.