Issue - meetings

The Cabinet Member for Educational Attainment and School Improvement introduced a report on the proposed formal establishment of Additional Resource Provisions (ARPs) at three mainstream schools and the expansion of the Further Education Centre (FEC) at Trinity Special School, to help meet increasing demand for specialist provision in the Borough.

The Cabinet Member advised that ARPs were designed to provide vital specialist and targeted support for pupils with long-term special educational needs or disabilities (SEND).  The three new ARPs would specialise in autism and create a total of 60 permanent places at Barking Abbey Secondary School, Thomas Arnold Primary School and Grafton Primary School.

The Further Education Centre (FEC) at Trinity School catered for young people between 16 and 19 years of age with complex and severe or profound learning difficulties, promoting the development of independent living skills within a vocational skills framework.  The existing provision catered for up to 60 students and the Cabinet Member advised that the intention was to increase that number to 90 permanent places.

The Cabinet Member referred to the funding arrangements for the expansions and the consultation that had taken place with parents, carers and other statutory bodies.

Cabinet resolved to:

(i)  Agree the permanent establishment of three Additionally Resourced Provisions (ARPs) at the following schools for pupils with a diagnosis of autism, each to have between 12 to 24 places with effect from the summer term 2020:

·  Barking Abbey Secondary School

·  Thomas Arnold Primary School

·  Grafton Primary School

(ii)  Agree to the expansion of the Further Education Centre (FEC) at Trinity Special School for pupils with complex and severe or profound learning difficulties by an additional 30 places, to 90 places, with effect from the start of the winter term 2020.