The County Council has a statutory duty to provide sufficient school places for all children who need a place. The demand for places for children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) is growing and to address this need the County Council are delivering a programme to both expand existing Specialist Support Centres (SSCs) and create new SSCs that are attached to mainstream schools and academies. This programme also assists with the aim of enabling children to attend school locally.
Consequently, the delivery of this programme will contribute to reducing the number of children and young people with SEND moving from maintained schools and academies into costly education provision in the Independent and Non-Maintained Special School sector, often at schools not situated in West Sussex.
As part of this programme the Worthing High School Academy Trust agreed that Worthing High School would increase SEND provision at the school from 14 to 18 places and redesignate all places from Additional Learning Needs to Social Communication Needs to reflect the increasing requirement for places for children with autism. The additional pupils have been admitted to the SSC since 2022 and supported within the existing accommodation. A project is proposed to remodel the existing SSC to better accommodate the increased pupil numbers.
Approval is required for the allocation of funding from the Capital Programme to provide the necessary accommodation for the SSC at Worthing High School to ensure it meets the need of the increased and changing cohort of pupils. In addition, the budget will fund all associated fees, ICT and furniture and equipment.
Decision type: Key
Reason Key: Expenditure > £500,000;
Decision status: Recommendations Approved
Divisions affected: Tarring;
Notice of proposed decision first published: 26/01/2024
Decision due: May 2024 by Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, Learning and Skills (Cllr Jacquie Russell)
Lead member: Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, Learning and Skills (Cllr Jacquie Russell)
Contact: Leigh Hunnikin, Project Manager Email: leigh.hunnikin@westsussex.gov.uk Tel: 033 022 23051.
Consultation process
Representations concerning this proposed decision can be made to the Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, Learning and Skills, via the officer contact, by the beginning of the month in which the decision is due to be taken.
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Democratic Services Contact: Wendy Saunders Tel: 033 022 22553