New proposal to expand Melton's special school into the college campus

Loughborough College Group asked for potential new owners or investors in the Asfordby Road site, which also includes Melton Theatre, because it says the buildings are no longer financially viable for them to run.

Discovery Trust put forward a plan to use the campus as a Post 16 SEND college but it was declined on the basis that it had no sustainable business plan and no support from Leicestershire County Council, the local education authority.

Since then, the college group say it is now putting the college and theatre site up for sale and is inviting interested parties to come up with a ‘value for money’ purchase of it.

And Discovery Trust remain very interested and say it is working on a proposal to use the campus as an extension of Melton’s Birch Wood Area Special School, which joined the trust shortly before Christmas.

The trust has teamed up with Melton Community Interest Company (CIC), Access All Areas, which is helping formulate the plan ‘to explore a viable, community-led proposal for the Melton campus and theatre that retains the site for education and public benefit’.

Rosalind Hopkins, director of specialist provision for the trust and a former headteacher at Birch Wood, told the Melton Times: “We’ve now got quite a strong proposal to extend Birch Wood into the college to provide an additional 75 SEND places, which would serve not only the Melton area but Charnwood and Market Harborough too.

"The local authority claimed that Post 16 was not the priority but we do know that they are desperate for SEND places in the county and this would expand Birch Wood across all ages.

“There are no special schools at Harborough and although Charnwood has a number of special schools they are all at capacity, just like Birch Wood.”

Rosalind, who said it was not possible to expand Birch Wood at its current Grange Drive location, explained that the support from being part of the trust had put it in a much stronger position to explore an expansion across another site.

Roma Frisby, of Access All Areas, which has built a strong reputation for helping young people into work and guiding them on personal development, commented: “While discussions are at planning stage and subject to statutory approvals, I am concerned that a site originally purchased and previously significantly refurbished with public funds is being considered for open-market sale rather than prioritised for education and community use.

“The case for keeping the site open is compelling.

"Local SEND provision would deliver clear transport and specialist school cost savings, the campus itself is a ‘sleeping giant’ requiring no new build and the loss of Melton’s only theatre would remove a vital cultural anchor that supports education, volunteering, participation and inclusion.”

A spokesperson for Leicestershire County Council said: “We’re always keen to explore ideas that strengthen SEND support in our communities, and we’ll look at the new plans carefully once they’re shared.

"We’ll continue to work closely with the trust and key partners as the proposals take shape.”