This in from the council, in their own words. Ed
Education for pupils on the Isle of Wight with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) is to be expanded and improved.
The Isle of Wight Council cabinet on Tuesday (11 Oct) approved steps that will, for example, double to 24 the number of places for young pupils with Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD).
More specialist education on the Island
The plans, were drawn-up following detailed consultation with parents and existing SEND students and are in line with the Government’s recent Green paper on the subject. One benefit of the new arrangements will be that fewer pupils will in future have to leave the Island for the specialist education they require.
The new provision involves creating two specialist units within primary mainstream education at Greenmount Primary and Broadlea Primary. This replaces the current single facility at Love Lane Primary. In the secondary schools a new ASD unit will be created at Sandown Bay Academy which doubles the existing capacity already at Carisbrooke College.
Working with other specialists
The plans involve even closer working with the highly regarded SEND provision at Medina House and St George’s and other specialist facilities such as those at Beaulieu House.
Key to the new plans is that the new units will be in mainstream schools combining specialist learning with the social and other opportunities offered by a mainstream environment. The children will be taught both within the specialist facility and in mainstream classes according to their particular needs.
“Enhanced provision will make a real difference”
Cllr Dawn Cousins, who introduced the paper at Tuesday’s meeting, said funding was already in place to implement the improvements.
“This enhanced provision will make a real difference to the educational and social wellbeing of a great many pupils. I am particularly pleased that, in future, fewer of our SEND pupils will have to travel off the Island to get their schooling,” she said.
“It is also heartening that these pupils themselves as well as their parents and carers have had a big say in developing the new arrangements which will also provide better value for money as well as an improved education provision.”
The cabinet paper is embedded below for your convenience
