A new building is urgently required at a school in Nuneaton. The single-storey structure with two classrooms is proposed for Higham Lane North Academy.
The secondary school site must accommodate reception pupils from September because Watling Meadows Primary School, which should have opened that month, has been delayed. This means reception classes will temporarily be held at the secondary school until February the following year. Given the age gap, the children require separate facilities from the main school site.
Proposals for the two-classroom building have been put forward to Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council. Once the new primary school becomes operational, the structure will serve a different purpose.
Warwickshire County Council requires a specialist resource provision at Higham Lane North Academy to support 20 students aged 11 to 16 with communication and interaction needs from September 2027.
According to the planning application, North Warwickshire currently has only one secondary facility for young people whose primary need relates to communication and interaction, located at Nicholas Chamberlaine School. Establishing a new specialist resource provision at Higham Lane North will ensure that pupils attending the primary school specialist provision at Watling Meadows Primary School have a suitable secondary school to progress to when they reach year 7.
The application further states that the educational facilities have been designed to accommodate 30 reception-aged children for approximately the first two to three terms, and subsequently function as a specialist resource provision for students aged 11 to 16 as a long-term special educational needs and disability facility. Toilet amenities will be adaptable to serve the different age groups.
Approximately £800,000 in funding for the new facility will be provided through the county council’s High Needs Provision Capital Allocation, which is an external grant from the Department for Education.
The proposals are currently under review by planning officers at the Town Hall ahead of a decision.