Sites studied for new special school (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

Cottingley looks favourite for £10m project

9:12am Thursday 30th April 2009 in Search By Ben Barnett

A £10 million school for children with emotional and behavioural difficulties is “likely” to be built in Cottingley.

Two or three locations are being discussed for the school which could be built from scratch or as a refurbishment of an existing building but the favourite is a site adjoining Nab Wood School.

The choice will be determined by budget decision making, according to a report to Bradford Council’s executive.

It is one of the new schools proposed to be built as part of phase three of the Council’s £400 million Building Schools for Future (BSF) programme. Another, a Communication and Interaction school, would be developed at the refurbished site of Thorn Park School.

Sue Colman, Bradford Council’s assistant director for services to children and young people, said: “Pupils at the proposed Social, Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties School will most likely have special educational needs statements.

“The location of the proposed school is yet to be determined. The land next to Nab Wood School is under consideration along with a number of other sites.”

Thirteen secondary schools are also being either re-built, re-modelled or refurbished in the £210 million third phase of the programme. Recommended redevelopment schemes for each school were considered by the executive earlier this month but members asked for a report to explain how maximum value for money had been achieved by the plans.

That report will be considered by the Young People and Education Improvement Committee next Wednesday.

In the report, published yesterday, Kath Tunstall, strategic director for services to children and young people, stated: “The Department for Schools, Children and Families expects local authorities to expand popular and successful schools. We have two such schools in the district – Ilkley and Bingley Grammar – which are continually oversubscribed and achieve over 60 per cent 5 A* to C including English and maths.”

A public consultation over phase three plans showed that almost every other school expressed “overwhelming” support to be re-built, but it has been ruled out because of “insufficient funds”.

Thornton Grammar School was one of the schools where a new build was the preferred option following the consultation.

In an appendix to the report, the school said many classrooms are too small and corridors and toilet facilities inadequate.