Members of Wiltshire Council will vote this week on whether to open a new “satellite campus” for children with SEND, after acquiring the site of a special independent school last year.
Calder House School, in Colerne, which closed in 2023, educated pupils with dyslexia and other learning difficulties, from the ages of six to 12 years. Since its purchase by Wilshire Council it has become known as The Northwood Centre.
The council wants the site to provide around 50 high-needs places and to be an extension to an existing special school, though it is not yet clear which one.
It hopes to reduce reliance on costly out of county places which, it said, can cost more than £62,000 a year for each pupil. The council estimates it will save almost £2 million a year by opening the new facility.
The greatest SEND demand in the county is for provision for children with social, emotional and mental health (SEMH) needs and those with speech, language and communication needs (SLCN), including autism.
Councillor Jon Hubbard, Cabinet Member for Children’s Services, Education and Skills, said: “We want our children in need of a special school place to remain in our County, and are determined to meet that need.
“We are taking proactive steps to ensure children and young people with SEND receive the right education in the right place.
“Repurposing The Northwood Centre as a special school satellite will create urgently needed places locally, reduce costs, and deliver on our commitment to inclusive, high-quality education.”
The decision on whether to approve the opening of the centre is set against a backdrop of national delays to the Department for Education (DfE) free school project, the council said, which was causing some urgency over appropriate places.
There is currently a pause on the Bitham Park Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH) free school in Westbury and two Alternative Provision free school sites in the north and south of the county. Bitham Park is due to cater for 130 pupils, and the two AP free school sites would each have 40 places.
