Work begins on £3m refurbishment of SEND school

Work is under way on a £3m project to transform Hilltop school in Maltby

Work has begun on a £3m project to transform a school for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

Cramped and outdated classrooms at Hilltop School in Maltby, Rotherham, will be replaced with spacious and accessible facilities as part of the project, with more than 50 contractors working for free on the revamp.

The school, which provides specialist education for children with complex needs aged between two and 19, will remain open throughout the refurbishment work.

Charlotte Farrington, founder of Yorkshire Children's Charity, which is co-ordinating the work, said it was "a life-changing project for the children and families" at the school.

Half of state-funded schools in England for children with special educational needs and disabilities are oversubscribed, BBC research found in 2023.

In 2011, Hilltop School had just over 80 children enrolled, but that number is now more than 180, according to the Nexus Multi Academy Trust that runs it.

However, it said the 1970s building did not have the space or features to properly accommodate their needs and that the school could not previously afford to update its facilities.

Charity founder Charlotte Farrington (right) with Hilltop School headteacher Sam MacDonald and Nexus Multi Academy Trust executive director Lana Stoyles

Yorkshire Children's Charity works with SEND schools across the region, but Ms Farrington said Hilltop School was "without question, the worst I've ever been into".

"I remember coming in to visit the first time, I cried all the way home from Rotherham to Leeds out of frustration - our most vulnerable children were having to make do with such poor facilities," she said.

She called it a "pressure cooker" for staff and students.

The school's current space for children to self-regulate has no windows or air conditioning

As part of its transformation, new classrooms and a centre for trampoline therapy will be built.

Headteacher Sam MacDonald said he was excited to have a designated space for the school's trampolines, as using them led to "higher engagement, higher interaction, and more alertness" amongst students.

He added they also gave "massive access to the wider world" to children with physical disabilities.

The school's ventilation system will also be upgraded.

Ms Farrington said: "Outside of home and hospital, school for many of these children is all that they know, and we really have to question what kind of society we live in if we are not putting their needs first and foremost."

More than 50 local contractors have volunteered to work for free on the project

Lee Powell, managing director of Henry Boot Construction, one of the contractors working on the project, said: "We're quite a competitive bunch in the construction and property industry.

"We're competing against each other for works and contracts, but for us all to join forces and do this here, it's quite rewarding."

He said he was impressed by how "upbeat" the school's students and staff were despite the "run down" building.

The work is expected to be complete by September 2026.

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