The Government has confirmed £5 million in funding to build a new special educational needs school in Downham Market, following determined campaigning by local MP Terry Jermy.
Located at Ryston End in Downham Market, the funding seeks to address long-identified gaps in provision for children with additional educational needs in the West of the county and would cater for up to 100 pupils.
Terry Jermy, Labour Member of Parliament for South West Norfolk said: “Having lobbied the Secretary of State for Education and other Government Ministers on the urgent need for a new special educational needs school in Downham Market since the election, I am thrilled the Government will be investing to make this proposal a reality.
“As one of only two MPs to employ a SEND Specialist Caseworker, I am acutely aware of how much the SEND system is in crisis”.
Norfolk County Council will receive the £5 million in funding from the Government for the West of the county with the Ryston End proposal, and a further estimated £8 million in funding for a project located in the East around Great Yarmouth.
The Council will be given the choice to create new permanent facilities or use the money to fund additional places in mainstream settings. Mr Jermy has confirmed he would prefer for the site at Ryston End to be utilised, given the distinct lack of special educational needs services in the West of the County and the long travel distances for families.
He said; “This funding shows the Labour Government’s commitment to solving the SEND crisis and ensuring children and young people with SEND get the education and support they need. The new special educational needs school will help repair the broken system and be a modern and supportive setting for children and young people with SEND and their families.”
The Ryston End site was once the Sixth Form linked to Downham Market High School but has sat empty and boarded up for a number of years.
Today’s announcement follows the four SEND Roundtables Terry Jermy MP held in the Autumn for both families and schools, in addition to two SEND surveys. The results of the surveys will form a forthcoming report which will focus on the impact of rurality on SEND and outline further recommendations to the Government to help fix the SEND crisis.
This funding forms part of a landmark £3 billion government investment to make sure more children can go to a brilliant school closer to home and enable children with additional needs to achieve and thrive.
Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson, said:
“Every child deserves to be seen, supported and stretched. Every child deserves to achieve and thrive in their local school. And every child, regardless of their need, deserves to leave school ready for life and work.
“For too many families, the reality has been very different, but we will transform the experience for children and young people with SEND by making sure that their local school is also the right school. Ahead our reforms next year, we’re laying the foundations of a new system that shifts children with SEND from forgotten to included and earns the confidence of parents.
“This £3 billion investment will transform lives. It will open the door to opportunity for tens of thousands of children with SEND, giving them the chance to learn, belong and succeed in their local community. This is how we build an education system that works for every child.”
