Garden School ‘thrilled’ as funding for expansion of post-16 education approved

Hackney’s The Garden School is today celebrating an approval of funding to increase its existing budgets and develop post-16 provision for its students.

The Garden, a school for pupils with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) and severe learning difficulties (SLD), will have its coffers increased by £200,000 in 2021/22 to £2.24m, after Hackney Mayor Philip Glanville restated his administration’s “deep commitment” to make investments into provision for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) within the borough.

Numbers of young people with ASD are increasing in Hackney according to census data and roll figures, with the number of young people with statements of SEN or education, health and care plans increasing by approximately 36 per cent over the last five years, with an average annual growth of 6.1 per cent with requests for post-16 places similarly rising year-on-year.

A spokesperson for the Garden School said: ““We are thrilled that Hackney Council has directed this additional money to the expansion of the school and the new post-16 project.

“We want the bricks and mortar of the new provision to express, subliminally, to our pupils how very much they are valued and the revised budget will support that.”

A site on Ickburgh Road romerly used by Ickburgh School, a school for pupils with profound and multiple needs, has been identified as the most suitable site for the refurbishment to accommodate the new provision, with the building occupied by New Regent’s College until last year.

The plans come after Hackney was allocated £3.375m from the government’s £365m Special Provision Capital Fund, which is designed to help local authorities create new school places and improve existing facilities for children and young people with SEND.

SEND chief Cllr Caroline Woodley said: “Warm thanks for supporting hte work on SEND provision. It just goes to show how much we can do with a special provision capital fund.

“We’ve managed despite Covid to progress with the opening of the autism resource provision in Queensbridge and again with Gainsborough, and this work is storming ahead now with the Garden School.

“I’m so pleased, and if we could only have more capital funding like this, we could do so much more. I really warmly welcome this.”

According to a report on the scheme, it is hoped the post-16 provision will provide education for Hackney SEN pupils enabling local students to access local education, helping them to develop the skills and preparation for adulthood and providing links to the community through the development of a post 16 curriculum.

The building’s roof will also be replaced and insulation upgraded to improve its energy efficiency.

The announcement also sees a £4.68m continuation of the council’s health and safety works to thirteen primary schools as part of the London Schools Board’s facade repair programme, a scheme of remedial works to 23 schools which began in 2017.

A spend approval of just over £12m over two years was authorised by the council back in 2017 following falling masonry at two of the borough’s schools, which provoked detailed surveys of the facades of all similar schools to assess the health and safety risks and potential scope of remedial works. 

The next schools set to receive the repairs are Daubeney, Mandeville, Morningside, Springfield, Southwold, Tyssen, De Beauvoir, Orchard, Harrington Hill, Colvestone, Princess May, Grasmere, and Woodberry Down schools.

Hackney Mayor Philip Glanville said: “This continues to represent significant investment in our in-borough SEND provision.

“That is something we had a deep commitment to, and this continues that work.

“We also have a continued investment in our existing schools and the facades programme.”