Cabinet to decide on £1.6 million investment in SEND school places
Councillors are being asked to invest £1.6 million to support extending places at a St Helens Borough school to provide specialist education for children with autism.
Article date: 10 December 2025
Cabinet will be asked to approve the plans that will see funding from the Department for Education used to give children targeted education while benefiting from being part of a mainstream school. If approved the money will go towards Broad Oak Primary School to provide the new provision at its Parr site.
Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care & Health, and temporary portfolio holder for finance, said: "This project will be delivered through the use of Government funding the council received as a focus to provide children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) more opportunities to receive their education in mainstream schools. This funding will allow for expansion of the site to provide four new classrooms and will create 20 new school places for children with Autistic Spectrum Disorder by September 2027."
"Opening up more places in our mainstream schools will mean we can support families to have their children stay at a school here in the borough, rather than further afield, which is always best for children and their families. This also represents excellent value for money compared to the alternative of placing children in high-cost independent alternatives out of the borough."
Once the new provision is up and running it will provide much needed, local, high quality and much better value for money placements compared to expensive independent placements which impact directly on local council tax payers.
The plans for the investment will go to Cabinet on Wednesday, 17th December at 4pm at St Helens Town Hall. To find out more about the plans visit: St Helens Borough Council Cabinet paper