Two new schools set to be built in city for SEND children

Education could soon be brought back to the vacant school site in Bath

Two new schools, which will provide a specialist learning environment for children with additional needs, could be built in Bath.

Under the plans, a new special school and an alternative provision school for vulnerable pupils at risk of permanent exclusion will be created.

The new schools are planned to be built at the vacant Bath Community Academy, formerly known as Culverhay School, which closed six years ago.

The Department for Education (DoE) will fund and build both schools, and Bath and North East Somerset Council's cabinet is set to approve the use of the Rush Hill site at a meeting on 6 June.

The land has been held for educational use since the academy closed in 2018, which a report stated had cost the council a net £158,000 in 2023.

Parts of the site not needed for the new schools could be released for future housing, as reported by the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Construction of the two new schools is planned to begin in 2025. The council will need to demolish the buildings - including the sports hall - and hand over the site to the DoE by early 2025.

Construction of the two new schools would begin later that year.

A new sports hall should form a part of the new school “as a dual use community sports facility run by the education provider", the reported added.

Cabinet member for children’s services, Paul May, said it was "excellent news" that the council can "take the next step to progress a suitable site".

“Having a new free special school in our area will provide a specialist and specific learning environment for children with special educational needs and disabilities.

"The alternative provision school will offer high-quality educational and vocational opportunities for young people who have been excluded or are at risk of being excluded," he said.