Derbyshire council allocates nearly £1m for Shirebrook school to increase special needs places
Derbyshire council has allocated nearly £1m of Government funding for a Shirebrook primary school and nursery as part of its on-going plans to increase special educational needs places by 300 across the county.
The county council’s Cabinet previously approved plans for £4,838,000 from an £11m pot of Government funding to be used at Shirebrook’s Stubbin Wood Nursery, as well as Chesterfeld’s Ashgate Croft School, Alfreton Park School, Long Eaton’s Brackenfield SEND School, Swanwick School and Sports College, and Stanton Vale School.
Shirebrook’s Stubbin Wood Nursery School, on Common Lane, has already been allocated £270,000 from the £11m pot to accommodate 15 additional special needs pupils from September 2024, with permanent accommodation and suitable outside space.
And the council’s Cabinet agreed at a meeting, on January 9, to allocate a further £953,000 for the school from the same £11m pot to progress this project.
A council spokesperson stated: “In May and July 2024, the council announced plans to spend £11m of this funding to support the creation of 300 new special school places across the county.”
The project at Shirebrook aims to provide permanent accommodation and suitable outside space to increase special school provision for pupils with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities on a site that has been identified in partnership with the TEAM Education Trust.
Cabinet approved the further £953,000 of funding for Stubbin Wood School after considering the Children’s Services SEND Capital allocations and the school’s new provision is expected to be based on the Burlington Avenue site with the academy’s current nursery.
The original £4,838,000 share of the £11m pot from the council’s overall special educational needs and or disabilities capital budget is supporting new facilities and resources at the six identified schools including Stubbin Wood.
Further allocations and progress as part of the £11m plan are expected to be announced in the coming months.