Work gets underway on new special school for Northumberland
21 Feb 2023 ARCHIVED (over 3 months old) - view latest news
Work is underway on the Gilbert Ward Academy in Blyth, a new special free school for Northumberland.
The state-of-the-art school will provide education for up to 80 students aged 11-16 with social, emotional and mental health (SEMH) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) needs.
Gilbert Ward Academy is part of Northumberland County Council’s wider strategy to increase special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) support across the county.
It will be operated by Prosper Learning Trust (PLT), which formed in January 2018 and now consists of four academies in Newcastle and Sunderland.
Chris Richardson, CEO of Prosper Learning Trust, said: “It’s very exciting to see work now getting underway and plans starting to take shape.
“Everybody at the Trust works very hard to ensure that we are providing the highest quality education for all our pupils. As our vision states ‘we help vulnerable young people succeed against the odds, understanding that learning is the key to that success’.
“As such we very much look forward to working with pupils in Northumberland and to providing the best possible educational experience for them, in a school where they can thrive and be happy.”
A bid for an 80-place secondary SEMH special school was made by the council in 2018 as part of the Government’s Free Schools programme.
The successful bid brought about the proposed Gilbert Ward Academy which will be based on the Princess Louise site in Blyth. The name for the school is an acknowledgement of Dr Gilbert Ward, who established public medical services in Blyth.
It is being built by the Department for Education and the Council has made a capital contribution to the project to meet site development costs.
Councillor Guy Renner-Thompson, Cabinet Member with responsibility for Children’s Services, said: “This is fantastic news and I am delighted to see work now getting underway on what is going to a fantastic addition to Northumberland.
“The Gilbert Ward Academy will offer pupils the opportunity to learn, thrive and grow in an environment that’s tailored to meet their needs.
“It’s part of our investment in education across the county to make sure we meet the needs of all our children and young people as close to home as possible.”
Construction firm, Bowmer + Kirkland (B+K), has been appointed as main contractors. B+K Project Manager, Ben Richardson, said: “We have been a framework contractor for the DfE since 2013 and have built 58 schools for them during that time.
“We are delighted to be building a further school in Blyth which will ensure that young people are given the best possible start in life by learning in modern, state of the art facilities.”