Purpose

Additional special school places are required
in Sandwell for children with an Education, Health and Care Plan.
The Orchard School has agreed to admit additional pupils to assist
to meet the demand.

To support admission of additional pupils, internal refurbishment
works are required to provide a suitable classroom. The school will
also need to purchase new furniture and equipment for those
additional pupils.

The Department for Education (DfE) has allocated additional capital
funding to Local Authority’s to support the introduction of
new special school places, High Needs Provision Capital Allocation
(HNPCA). The proposed works will be funded from the Council’s
HNPCA allocation.

Further works to provide additional places at the school are
planned and will be subject to a further report seeking approval to
proceed with a second phase.

Content

That approval be given to proceed with the
first programme of planned works to convert two existing storage
rooms to a sensory / activity room and a classroom at The Orchard
School, Causeway Green Road, Oldbury B68 8LD;
allocate a total of £35,285.76 (inclusive of 10% contingency
for capital works) from the Council’s High Needs Provision
Capital Allocation funding to enable the project to
proceed.