(UK) Sheffield: 300 place school for "high-needs students"; "growing numbers"

Dec 6, 2023, BBC: Sheffield College to reopen centre for high-needs students https://ca.news.yahoo.com/sheffield-college-reopen-centre-high-082026420.html

Central England

Sheffield College is to reopen a centre for up to 300 high-needs students, it has been confirmed.

The centre will be located at the Peaks Campus in Waterthorpe and is planned for 2024….

It will include quiet spaces, sensory rooms and an independent living suite, said the college. A council spokesperson added that it will be a "brilliant opportunity to increase provision for young people with SEND’.

Peaks Campus closed in September because it was too expensive to run and was not being used enough, the college said.

The closure meant 300 students, including 65 high-needs learners, had to travel to a campus in Hillsborough about 10 miles (16km) away, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service….

They said the campus was a vital resource for students with special needs and was the only further education provision in the area.

The announcement comes after a consultation about the closure between Sheffield College and Sheffield City Council and it has been decided that the campus on Waterthorpe Greenway will at first cater to 100 students and then look to expand.

Angela Foulkes, college chief executive and principal, said that the new campus will "ensure that no one is left behind", and continued: "We will offer students the very best experience in a supported environment that is bespoke to their needs."

Councillor Dawn Dale, chair of Sheffield City Council’s education, children and families policy committee, added: "The Sheffield College and the council recognise the growing numbers of children and young people with Special Educational Needs and are taking action to support them."