Proposal

Cambridgeshire County Council (CCC) is consulting on increasing the capacity of Castle Special School, Courtney Way, Cambridge, CB4 2EE. The school currently has 200 children on roll. An increase in capacity from 200 to 220 will be achieved through permanent provision at two other sites (known as satellite sites):

A satellite at The Fields Children’s Centre and Nursey, Galfrid Road, Cambridge, CB5 8ND will provide 20 places for children aged between 2 and 7 (up to the end of Key stage 1) with Education Health and Care Plans (EHCPs).
Use of gifted accommodation within Chesterton Community College, Gilbert Road, Cambridge, CB4 3NY will provide space for 15 children aged between 16 and 19 with EHCPs to attend lessons on a different site. The pupils attending this site will be on the formal pathway, and those with more complex needs will remain on the main Castle Area Special School site. This arrangement will be formally reviewed at regular intervals.

The satellite provisions and gifted accommodation proposed will allow for the Castle School site to accommodate more pupils and release the training room /ICT suite (both currently classrooms) back into the space that they were designated for.

Local Authority Details

Cambridgeshire County Council, New Shire Hall, Emery Crescent, Enterprise Campus, Alconbury Weald, Huntingdon PE28 4YE.

School details

Castle is a community area special school currently offering 200 places for children and young people with a range of special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), aged between 2 and 19 years old, all of whom have an EHCP. The school was judged Good by Ofsted at its most recent inspection in September 2017.

Description of alteration and evidence of demand

The SEND census data (see table 1) shows that the number of children with an EHCP in Cambridgeshire rose by almost 53% between 2015 and 2020. While many of these children will be able to successfully access education provision in mainstream schools, those with more severe needs will require a special school place.

Number of children resident in Cambridgeshire who have an EHCP

(Data taken for the SEN2 return to the Department for Education, submitted on approximately 31 January of each year.)

Year	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020
Number of children	3204	3429	3822	4198	4690	5292

Therefore, CCC and Castle School, working together, propose an increase to the capacity of the school through satellite provision, enabling it to offer additional special school places to those children who require them.

What the consultation is looking at

Increasing the number of places at Castle Area Special School from 200 to 220, through satellite provision at The Fields Children’s Centre and Nursery and gifted space at Chesterton Community College. This expansion will help CCC meet the rising demand for places for children with EHCPs.

The underpinning rationale for proposed change

The number of children within Cambridge City and wider Cambridgeshire with EHCPs has risen steadily over the last seven years. The proposed change will provide a more appropriate match between the places available at special schools in the area and the demand.
The satellite provisions proposed will provide space within the local community which is suitable in terms of the age range each site will serve.
The satellite within the gifted space at Chesterton Community College will allow for post 16 learners who need a special school place, to learn in an environment surrounded by age-appropriate peers.
This inclusive provision will also lead to increased awareness of SEND for Chesterton Community College pupils.
Castle School is already providing a high quality of teaching, based on their Ofsted rating.
The provision within the gifted space at Chesterton Community College will provide joint opportunities for inclusion, developing accreditation opportunities and responding to the local and national Preparation for Adulthood Agenda.

Castle School’s Governing Body is aware and has confirmed its support for the proposal to expand onto the proposed satellite sites.

Objectives

(Including how the proposal would increase educational standards and parental choice.)

To support the Local Authority (LA) in ensuring that sufficient special school places are available across Cambridge City and wider Cambridgeshire, in particular providing places for children who are in immediate need of special school placement.

The Fields satellite: To ensure that parents have a choice in where to educate their child, by providing additional places for children in the local area in a smaller, more intimate setting in a nursery building nearby which is currently underused.

Gifted space at Chesterton Community College Satellite: To ensure that parents and post 16 learners have a choice of education setting, by providing age-appropriate places with the appropriate level of support.

The effect on other educational institutions within the local area

Where appropriate for the individual child, pupils with learning difficulties, would still be educated in their local mainstream school.

The change will ensure more children who need to, can access a local special school place.

Project costs and indications of how these will be met

The provision at the Fields Children’s Centre and Nursery will consist of an external play area suitable for physical activity, therapy/small meeting room, light room, soft play room, offices and two large classrooms. There is a shared meeting room available. Meals will be cooked on site by The Fields Nursery staff. Children will be transported to the main Castle School site to use the pool. Capital costs will be covered by Cambridgeshire County Council.

The provision within the gifted space at Chesterton Community College will consist of one classroom. In addition, there will be shared use of lunch space, the pool, and the gym. The curriculum will be based on the site, within the community, with some opportunities on the main Castle site. Capital costs will be covered by Cambridgeshire County Council.

Other considerations

Pupil transition

The expansion of the school will directly impact the pupils who will move from the main site to a satellite provision. The satellite provision at The Fields will have a minibus on site which will transport pupils from satellite provision to the main site for education, health and care activities, as required.

The Fields site is 3 miles away from the main Castle School site. Chesterton Community College is only 0.2 miles from the main Castle School site. As children are already transported to and from school by taxi/minibus, impact on travel will be minimal.

Admissions will continue to be made through Cambridgeshire’s SEND panel process.

Delivery of whole school activities

Whole school activities will be managed by multiple means:

Virtual togetherness via Zoom or MS teams.
Provision of bus transport for pupils based at satellite sites.
A calendar of events will be published each year, ensuring that parents and staff are aware of arrangements made.

Access to the curriculum

Pupils based at both satellite sites will access some curriculum activities on the main site:

Fields based children will access weekly swimming and library sessions at the main Castle School site.
Pupils based at the gifted accommodation within will attend the main Castle School site for assemblies and some work-related learning activities.

Staffing, HR and training

New staff employed from September 2022 will be contracted to work on multiple sites.
Existing staff moving to satellite sites will move voluntarily. This has been agreed by the staff affected and reissuing of contracts is being explored.
Some staff will work flexibly across sites, for example, Headteacher, Senior Teachers, Business Manager, Therapists, level 4 Teaching Assistants (TAs), and support staff such as Caretaker.

It is anticipated that the satellite provisions would be staffed as follows:

The Fields Children’s Centre and Nursery satellite:

Assistant Headteacher (AHT)
1 level 4 TA
2 level 3 TAs
4 level 2 TAs
1 Midday Supervisor

Gifted space at Chesterton Community College satellite:

AHT
1x 0.8 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) class teacher. AHT to provide teaching cover for additional day and Pre-Planned Absence.
1 level 4 TA
1 level 3 TA
2 or 3 level 2 TAs depending on pupil need and high needs funding

Staff training and meetings will occur via multiple means:

They may take place on the main, or the satellite sites
They may be accessed virtually.

Leadership meetings will take place on the main site.

Governance

Governance of both satellite provisions will remain with the Castle School Governance Board and Leadership Team.

Implementation plan

As part of the LA’s decision-making process a consultation on the proposed changes will run for a period of 4 weeks from 27 June 2022 to 25 July 2022 and will seek the views of all interested parties. The LA will consider carefully all comments received during the consultation period before reaching a decision on whether or not to proceed with the expansion onto satellite sites. If the change is agreed, it is proposed that it would come into effect from September 2022.