(UK) Coventry: 200 new specialist places in 3 schools; part of $220M funding

Mar 23, 2026, Nearly 200 new school places for children with special educational needs set to be created in Coventry - The Coventry Observer

NEARLY 200 new specialist places for children with special educational needs are set to be created in Coventry through the expansion of three secondary schools.

Design work is already under way or in planning at President Kennedy, Westwood and Cardinal Wiseman secondary schools – part of a £164million [$220M] investment in the city’s schools by Coventry City Council.

The expansions are set to add capacity ahead of September 2027, when Coventry’s largest primary cohort – the current Year 5 cohort, which stands at around 4,660 pupils – moves into secondary education. , , ,

In Coventry’s primary sector, Keresley Grange Primary School’s admission is set to expand from 45 to 60 – moving to two forms of entry – to address current pressure on places in that part of the city.

Building projects are currently underway at Baginton Fields and Woodfield which will collectively create around 190 additional specialist places for children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND).

The places will be delivered in phases as each project completes.

In addition, three new primary and one new secondary Enhanced Resource Provision (ERP) – specialist units at mainstream schools which support pupils with additional needs – are planned to open in 2026-27.

Since 2017, 500 places have been added across Coventry’s eight special schools.

Coun Dr Kindy Sandhu, Coventry City Council’s Cabinet Member for Education and Skills, said: “We have seen extraordinary demand for school places in Coventry in recent years, and I am proud of how the council and its partners have responded. . . .