CHESHIRE West and Chester Council is creating an additional 125 school places for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

Following a review of its SEND system, the council is implementing recommendations which includes the approval of a significant increase in the provision of school places for those with additional needs.

As part of the process, the council has looked present and future demand for school places and mapped it against the current provision.

And after working closely with schools across the borough CWAC has identified, and now approved, an additional 93 resourced provision places and 32 special school places for September.

In addition, the council is also opening the first Cheshire West and Chester special school satellite, which will be hosted within mainstream Upton-by-Chester High School.

Helen Brackenbury, executive director of children and families, said: “We are pleased to announce these 93 new resourced places and 32 special school places.

"We are especially excited about Upton-by-Chester High School being the first ever satellite provision to be created in CWAC.

"Each young person will have a personalised timetable with opportunities for supported inclusion in mainstream lessons and informal social activities within Upton-by-Chester High School.

"The satellite classroom will be housed within the school with access to a secure shared outdoor area, namely a sensory garden.

"The satellite also links well with Upton’s proximity to Acresfield Primary School which means that children attending this provision may be able to transfer to the satellite provision for year seven, which is their local mainstream school rather than travelling to similar provisions further away.

"This can be a difficult and/or isolating experience for the young people as well as having cost implications for the council.”

The news follows an increase in Cheshire and across the UK for specialist placements for children and young people, particularly for those with autism spectrum conditions (ASC), social, emotional and mental health (SEMH) needs and speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) and associated learning needs.

Resourced provision is a way of enabling children with more specialist needs to access their education with specialist support and resources in a mainstream school usually in a separate and appropriately equipped classroom.

This allows youngsters to remain on a mainstream site (with their peers and usually in their local communities) instead of attending a special school.

Resourced provisions are staffed by highly qualified workers who have similar experience to those staff working in the special school sector.

Of the resourced provisions places, 63 are in primary schools across the borough, with 30 in secondary schools.

The council’s focus now will move to creating more resourced provision in secondary schools, whilst working with schools and parents to enable schools to provide inclusive mainstream placements for those children and young people that could thrive within them.

Cllr Adam Langan, lead member for children and families at CWAC, added: "This is a good first step to building our capacity of places for children.

"The satellite is also intended to grow as part of Upton High’s government funded school rebuilding programme.

"This will create an additional class for KS4, as well as existing KS3 class, which opens in September."