Construction of a new £22million ‘ultra-sustainable’ Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) school in North London is approaching completion, with the final modular unit installed this week. Expected to fully open to students in the next academic year, the school is designed to give children ‘more options locally’ for places to avoid them being sent out of the borough.
When complete, Wembley Manor School on London Road will provide an additional 150 SEND places in Brent, to help reduce the more than 500 children and young people being educated outside of the borough, according to council figures from 2021. Of the total 576, around 180 are being educated in independent schools, at a cost of £7.2m a year.
On Tuesday (March 18), key stakeholders, including teachers and councillors, attended the installation of the final modular units used to construct the classrooms. The additional spaces will help to address the growing need for SEND places, with the number of Brent pupils needing Educational, Health, and Care Plans (EHCPs) having risen by almost 15 per cent every year over the past decade, according to the council. This trend has been seen across London and is predicted to continue.
Brent’s SEND capital investment programme, which Wembley Manor School is part of, is expected to deliver over 400 SEND places across the borough by the end of 2025. It aims to reduce the need to send children to schools outside of the borough, with the council expecting to save up to £6m a year against the Dedicated School Grant.
Cabinet Member for Children, Young People, and Schools, Cllr Gwen Grahl, said: “It’s fantastic to see the work that has gone into building a top-quality school that we know is going to have a huge positive impact on local children with special educational needs. I want to thank Reds10, and everyone who has come together to work on this project. We look forward to welcoming pupils through the doors in October.”
Achieving BREEAM Outstanding certification – the highest sustainability rating – the school will provide SEND teaching spaces, external play areas, sports facilities, as well as car parking and drop-off facilities. The three-storey site consists of 121 modular units, all of which were manufactured at construction company Reds10’s offsite facility in East Yorkshire before being shipped to London Road.
Director and Education Sector Lead for Reds10, Joe Shepherd, said: “Wembley Manor School will provide an incredible SEND facility for Brent, and we are extremely proud of the progress we’ve made to bring the new school to fruition. The successful installation of the modular units ahead of schedule is testament to the hard work and dedication of our team and our commitment to delivering high-quality and sustainable educational facilities for pupils to learn and thrive.”
Grant Williams is a journalist and Local Democracy Reporter (LDR) for Reach PLC, reporting on local government, politics and community issues across London. As part of the Local Democracy Reporting Service, he has contributed to Harrow Online, covering council decisions, housing developments, transport, planning matters and stories affecting local communities across Harrow and Brent.
