Parents despair at plans to close Mansfield special school residential unit

The residential unit of a special school in Mansfield is set to be closed despite pleas from parents for it to remain open.
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A survey found 92 per cent of respondents were opposed to the closure, at Fountaindale Special School, but bosses at the school have said it will mean they can extend the amount of day pupils they can accommodate, at a time when there is significant demand for places.

The school is run by Conservative-controlled Nottinghamshire County Council and the Labour group had opposed the move, calling it insensitive, and saying it showed total disregard for the consultation.

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The school is in the process of becoming an academy, after a critical report by Ofsted put the school in special measures, while the residential unit itself was categorised as ‘requires improvement.’

Fountaindale Special School's residential unit is set to close permanently. Photo: Google EarthFountaindale Special School's residential unit is set to close permanently. Photo: Google Earth
Fountaindale Special School's residential unit is set to close permanently. Photo: Google Earth

Among the concerns raised by Ofsted about the residential unit were that safeguarding was not effective enough.

Once the report was published, the school decided to temporarily close the centre, which has space for four pupils, but has now decided to make the closure permanent.

The council says the closure will save £116,000 per year, which will then be spent on other areas of special needs education.

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Coun Liz Plant, Labour’s education spokeswoman, said: “The decision to close the residential unit at Fountaindale Special School once again demonstrates a Tory administration out of touch with the lives of real people.

“The outcome of the consultation was quite clear – more than 90 per cent of the 75 parents and carers who responded stated that they did not agree with the closure.

“This comes at a time when many families caring for children with complex needs have been bravely struggling with reduced respite care during the current Covid situation, and this report fails to recognise this, nor does it highlight any additional provision for those children with the most complex care needs beyond the existing ‘local offer’.

“As it is both insensitive and totally disregards the outcome of the consultation, Labour members therefore could not support it.”

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Marion Clay, head of education at the county council, said: “We are acutely short of these places for children with special needs.

"I don’t think we can emphasise that enough.

“The provision is made for this small number of children, none of whom have has access to the provision since the adverse Ofsted inspection, none of the children require that level of provision.

“The type of provision can be accessed at other parts of the system.

“One of the main arguments is about an overwhelming need in the fullness of time to use the space to be able to provide more spaces for more children with special needs.

"That’s an overriding argument.”

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Coun Philip Owen is chairman of the children’s committee at the council, which took the decision.

He said: “It was put into special measures by Ofsted in June of this year, while the residential aspect of the school was judged to require improvement.

“There were a number of concerns with that unit.

“The executive head teacher and the governors said they wanted to close the residential unit temporarily, to allow focus on the improvement of the school, and when a school is in special measures there’s an awful lot of work that has got to be done.

“The school has historically used the residential unit to give support to young people on the cusp of post-16 education to prepare for greater independence and adulthood.

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“It remains the case that this is a requirement for special schools to deliver this level of provision in other ways, primarily through their school daytime curriculum.

“We have to accept the consultation feedback doesn’t support the closure, but that comes as no great surprise, does it, let’s be honest about that.

“The number of Nottinghamshire children and young people accessing a place in a special school has increased by more than 26 per cent in the last three years, and this increase in demand is anticipated to continue.

"So we have got to think about that, and we’ve got to think about confronting that.”