Agenda item

The Panel will consider a report giving an update on the rebuild of 2 new special schools at Joseph Norton Academy and Woodley School and College. 

Contact:         Martin Wilby, Head of Education Places and Access Strategy

                        Jo-Anne Sanders, Service Director, Learning and Early Support

The Panel considered a report providing an update on the rebuild of two Special Schools, Joseph Norton Academy and Woodley School and College, presented by Stewart Horn, Head of Children’s Integrated Commissioning and Martin Wilby, Head of Education Places and Access.

Jo-Anne Sanders, Service Director for Learning and Early Support, provided an introduction and advised the Panel that Kirklees was making a huge investment as part of its sufficiency duty, to enable the ambition of placing Kirklees young people close to where they live. It had been recognised that there was a growing need for places for children with complex autism, and for children with Social Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH) needs and additional places would be provided as part of the rebuilds.

Stewart Horn highlighted the following key points regarding the rebuild of Joseph Norton Academy:

·       Joseph Norton Academy was facing growing demand for places for children with SEMH needs. The Academy was currently based in Scissett and had 63 places, however there was a need for more places and for a higher-quality learning environment.

·       The new building had been designed to incorporate the views of staff, and the children currently at the school had also been consulted using the Our Voice Team.

·       The new school would be built on the site of the former Deighton Centre.

·       The pre-contract phase involved checking the design against value for money for Kirklees and finalising the design, costings and timelines.

·       Groundworks were due to start on site in early June 2025.

·       Links between the school and the Deighton and Ashbrow communities were being developed.

·       The number of pupils at the school was increasing by utilising other sites, so that pupil numbers could gradually grow before the new building was completed.

·       Other ongoing activities included the purchasing of furniture and IT for the school, and transition arrangements.

Martin Wilby highlighted the following key points regarding the rebuild of Woodley School and College:

·       Staff and pupils had been involved with the design of the new build to ensure it met the children’s needs.

·       The future Woodley site presented more complexity due to the existing buildings.

·       In July 2024 a report had been presented to Cabinet with a list of key elements that would need to be addressed in order to start the build process and some of these had been addressed and others were underway.

·       Telecoms masts on the building had now been removed after legal challenges had been overcome.

·       The private pre-school site had moved to alternative and improved facilities at Almondbury Library.

·       The Private Public Partnership arrangement that the building was under was due to be exited within the near future.

·       Procurement had taken place to recruit a demolition contractor and activity should start on site over the coming weeks.

·       A temporary site in Crosland Moor was being used as a satellite site for the school, with 25 pupils gaining a positive experience there prior to the new site opening.

In response to a question from the Panel about when the schools would reach capacity, Jo-Anne Sanders advised that Woodley School and College was almost at the capacity of the new build with the combined number of pupils at the satellite site and the current site. For Joseph Norton, because the school was doubling in size, careful planning was being put into place for transition to a larger school population and premises.  The Panel was informed that Joseph Norton was also expanding its age range and would admit girls. Each child being admitted to the new school would be looked at individually to promote a smooth transition.

The Panel asked when Joseph Norton would be completed and were advised that it was hoped to be completed in a year, however many factors could affect the timescales. Woodley School and College’s rebuild would take longer due to the necessity for demolition on the site.

In response to a question regarding the engagement with parents, staff and children, the Panel were informed that a dedicated team had run play sessions and more formal facilitated feedback to gather the children’s voice. This had included videos, drawings and comments, resulting in elements being included in the design such as gardens outside classrooms and a farm provision at Joseph Norton, and a Forest School provision and outside playground including slides, swings and trampolines at Woodley. Proposed designs had been taken back to the schools to ensure the designs reflected the feedback given and reactions from the children had been positive. The Panel was informed that some parents would find the move from Scissett to Deighton more difficult than others, but the location had been chosen as central within Kirklees to facilitate easier transport for the majority of pupils. Parents had raised questions over the length of time the project was taking, but the service was committed to getting the builds of the best quality and value, which took time.

The Panel asked what would happen if circumstances changed with the external partners involved and were advised by Jo-Anne Sanders that the Council had engaged the services of technical experts to put in challenge and support and provide an appropriate level of check and balance. Other partners would be contractually bound, and it was felt that the projects undertaken had been future-proofed.

The Panel raised the issue of recent successful engagement by the Joseph Norton Academy with the community, and were assured that the school wanted to become part of the Deighton community and would take steps to do so. 

The Panel asked for detail of the consultation process and were advised by Jo-Anne Sanders and Martin Wilby that there was a genuine commitment to ongoing engagement with all parties, and that results of the consultation undertaken by Woodley School and College and Joseph Norton Academy as part of their “significant change" process had been published. The Panel were assured that residents, parents, pupils, staff and relevant ward councillors had all been engaged with at the time when sites for both builds were chosen. Further detail on the consultation on Woodley School and College could be found in the Cabinet report for the meeting on 12^th March 2024. (Public Pack)Agenda Document for Cabinet, 12/03/2024 13:30

RESOLVED:

1)    That the officers be thanked for their contributions and the report be noted.

2)    That a visit by the Panel be undertaken to the two new schools when the rebuilds were complete.