Changes planned for Windsor first school's special needs offer

Hilltop First School in Windsor could soon get a formal SEN Unit for pupils with special educational needs, focusing on speech, language and communication needs.

Right now, the school already supports these pupils within the mainstream.

Under the new model, pupils would spend more than half their time in the unit but still join mainstream classes.

The new unit would also offer clearer rules on admissions, funding, staffing and curriculum, while still letting children take part in mainstream classes where suitable.

The unit would have up to 10 places and use the school’s existing space.

The council says this change would strengthen SEN provision in the borough and help reduce pressure on specialist schools like Manor Green.

It would be funded by the borough’s share of a £6.5m government grant for high needs education.

An informal consultation in early 2023 found that 78 per cent of respondents supported the creation of an SEN Unit at Hilltop First School.

If approved, the unit would open on September 1. The move wouldn’t affect current pupils and is backed by a majority of those who responded to an earlier consultation.

View the full proposal and respond by Friday, June 13 at: rbwmtogether.rbwm.gov.uk/hilltop-first-school-sen-unit

Comments can also be sent by email to: schoolplaces@achievingforchildren.org.uk or by post to: School Places and Capital Team, Town Hall, St Ives Road, Maidenhead, SL6 1RF.

SEND in RBWM

According to the Royal Borough, the number of children with EHCPs has risen from 697 in 2012 to 1,289 in March this year, and is expected to grow further.

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
• Another resource base will be opening at Trevelyan Middle School in September 2025
• The resource base at Dedworth Green First School has been extended.