Historic Braywick House could become a special needs school

A new SEND school will be set up in the historic Braywick House, if RBWM agrees.

Braywick House West is a Grade II listed mansion house, originally dating to 1675.

In 1995 the property was comprehensively refurbished and an extension added known as Braywick House East, a modern Grade A two storey-office building.

The pair is known collectively as Braywick House, set within a 4.5-acre site. It has stood vacant since the early 2020s.

To bring it back into use, the plan is to turn it into a SEND facility, with a range of therapy and activity spaces for students.

The school will be run by Polaris, a children’s care organisation with 19 companies and multiple schools, founded in 1987.

It supports children and young people with social, emotional, and mental health difficulties, and communication and interaction, cognition, and learning needs.

Polaris delivers personalised curriculums tailored to individual pupils. Children are taught in small classes of a maximum of four to six pupils per class.

Because Braywick House is a listed building, RBWM will have to be sure that proposals will not harm its historic elements.

A change in use would only consist of limited alterations to the Listed Building, so its historic fabric ‘would not be materially affected,’ said representatives Harris Irwin Associates.

“The large existing rooms in Braywick House West and easily adaptable spaces in Braywick House East lend themselves to use as a Special Education Needs facility,” they wrote.

“Unlike a mainstream school, the rooms are ideally sized for the smaller classes required.”

Much of the external hard surfaced parking will be retained as staff parking and pupil drop-off facilities, though some will be changed.

Some will be re-purposed into a hard external play space for non-ambulant pupils (unable to move about independently) or severely autistic pupils, for PE and outdoor learning.

Another plan is for a Multi-Use Games Area (MUGA), a versatile outdoor sports facility designed to accommodate a variety of sports.

Earlier in design development, RBWM’s conservation officer raised concerns that the MUGA and its enclosing fencing would be detrimental to the setting of the listed building.

As a result, this has been omitted from the final proposals.

In addition to these hard surfaced play spaces, there is also set to be a playing field in the large grassy area to the south and west of the building.

The intention is to retain the vast bulk of the trees, and the grassed playing area ‘will protect the long-term future of the trees found here.’

A secure perimeter fence will be required, and the wall fronting Windsor Road will need increasing in height with railings.

Secondary access from Harvest Hill Road will only be used for maintenance purposes.

The site has ‘easy access and multiple transport options’ and the proximity of the building to the A308(M) allows the school to cater for a larger catchment area, Harris Irwin Associates claims.

“The existing listed building has the grandeur which lends itself to the proposed use as a school, concluded Harris Irwin Associates.

“It is understood that [RBWM] believe a SEND School would be a good use of the site and would be supported in principle, given a need for specialist schools in the area,” they wrote.

“There is an identified predicted rise in the number of pupils with special needs and that there will be a need for additional support within the borough.

To see all documents for the Braywick House, enter reference 24/02036/FULL into the Royal Borough’s online planning portal.

SEND in RBWM

Currently, many pupils in the Royal Borough are educated outside of it, due to a shortfall in placements appropriate for their needs.

RBWM has been looking into address this, purchasing land for a new school offering 100 places in December 2024, supported by using Government funding.

Plans for a new SEMH special school (Social, Emotional, and Mental Health needs) west of Windsor have been in motion, but the Department for Education is in control of timescales and opening is likely to be no earlier than September 2028.

Additionally, work has been ongoing to put ‘resource bases’ in mainstream schools for SEND pupils, and expand the number of places at existing SEND schools. So far:

• Up to 20 more places have been approved at Manor Green School, expected to be completed in 2025
• A new sixth form is approved at Forest Bridge School, expected in September 2026
• A resource base has opened in 2024/25 at Hilltop First School
• Another resource base will be opening at Trevelyan Middle School in September 2025
• The resource base at Dedworth Green First School has been extended.