Wiltshire Council has begun its promised consultation to assess the views of parents, carers, pupils, staff and the general public on its plans for special needs education in the county.
The council is proposing to invest £20m in a new ‘centre of excellence’ for pupils with special needs and disabilities. It will be developed at Rowdeford near Devizes to match the facilities at the Council’s Exeter House school in Salisbury.
The plans mean that three special needs schools will close in 2023. They are Larkrise (Trowbridge), St Nicholas (Chippenham) and the existing Rowdeford school.
People have until 1 March 2019 to comment on the plans. They can respond to the statutory consultation in the following ways:
• Wiltshire Council’s website consultation page
• By emailing specialschools@wiltshire.gov.uk
• At information surgeries in the schools
• At open meetings for parents/carers run by Wiltshire Parent Carer Council (WPCC) which will be advertised on the WPCC website
