Oct 14, 2021, North Yorkshire County Council: Increase in residential school places for children with autism proposed https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/news/article/increase-residential-school-places-children-autism-proposed
A consultation on expanding the number of residential places in North Yorkshire for children and young people with complex needs related to autism is to go ahead.
Currently, many of these children and young people attend independent, residential special schools out of the county, in order to meet their needs. But they are often long distances away from their families and communities.
In a bid to keep families closer together as well as curtailing the expense of out-of-county placements, we are planning to expand and change the nature of residential provision at Welburn Hall School, in Kirkbymoorside, Ryedale.
Welburn Hall is a maintained special school for pupils aged between eight and 19, providing for a range of learning and communication based needs including Autism Spectrum Condition (ASC), speech, language and communication needs, moderate and severe learning difficulties.
This month, the County Council’s Children and Young People’s Service Executive gave the go-ahead to a proposal which will see up to 12 boarding places being created for up to seven nights a week during term-time to cater for children and young people aged 8 to19 with ASC and related difficulties. As a result, more young people with these needs can be educated in their local area and form connections with their local community….
We will now consult on this expansion and change of provision, which should result in social and financial benefits in keeping children within the county and closer to family and friends. The number of children with complex needs relating to Autism Spectrum Disorder is expected to continue to grow over the coming years….
