Column: New school will help children to learn, thrive and succeed

​I am deeply passionate about investing in our children’s future and making sure that they are equipped to learn and thrive in an environment which will help them to succeed.

That is why I’m delighted, at our county council’s recent planning committee, that approval was given to build a new state-of-the-art school for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) on the former Ravensdale School site in Mansfield.

Building a school like this will provide a specific and specialist learning environment for pupils with autism and social, emotional, and mental health needs.

As a council, we are working extremely hard to meet the needs of children and young people with SEND, and their families – and central to this is providing much-needed special school places in Nottinghamshire.

It is also a key aim of our SEND planning strategy to help more young people to access the education they need, near to where they live – and this is why this is an excellent location for this purpose-built facility because Mansfield and Ashfield have seen the largest increases in the number of Education Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) between January 2019 to January 2023.

Together, the two districts account for 35.8 per cent of all new EHCPs – with 56.9 per cent of these for children and young people with autism – which means the location is perfect for providing specialist educational provision to meet both local and countywide need.

Our teams work incredibly hard to support SEND children and young people in Nottinghamshire, ensuring that they have access to first-class education.

The new school has been very carefully designed to create a positive learning environment for children and young people who may have heightened sensory awareness – providing an engaging space in which the next generation can learn and develop.

Please do keep a lookout for further updates about the school before it opens in 2025, including details about which trust will be approved to open it.

Finally, I would also like to thank my colleague, Councillor Andre Camilleri, who identified this site and has been pushing for a school of this type in his division for

more than two years.

I know he’s delighted the application has been approved, and I am sure readers in Mansfield and Ashfield will be too.

This new SEND school is part of the county council’s £40m of investment into the creation of additional SEND school places across Nottinghamshire, ensuring every child across Nottinghamshire receives the best education.