PLANS to build a new special needs school for Reading and Wokingham students have taken a 'significant' step forward recently.

The Oak Tree School, which is set to be built on a plot of land in Winnersh, will provide education for students with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), from primary-school age up to their final year of Sixth Form, for students within the Reading and Wokingham boroughs.

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Professor Dr Kate Reynolds, director of education at Brighter Futures for Children, said: "We are delighted that plans for the new SEND free school are moving forward and would like to congratulate the Maiden Erlegh Trust on their successful bid to run the school.

"We look forward to working with them and Wokingham Borough Council on progressing this exciting project.

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"Maiden Erlegh Trust already runs a number of schools in the area and has recently taken over the Hamilton School, previously known as Phoenix College, an SEMH special school in Reading.

"This new free school will provide 150 much-needed places for Reading and Wokingham children with SEND and is part of Brighter Futures for Children’s strategy to meet the increasing demand for SEND places in the town."

The free school is designated for pupils with social, emotional, and mental health needs, as well as disabled students and students with an Autism Spectrum Disorder diagnosis.

It is hoped the school, of which the Department for Education will fully pay for by development, will take on 75 students from the Reading Borough, and 75 students from the Wokingham Borough.

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Cllr UllaKarin Clark, Wokingham’s executive member for children’s services said: "This is such a wonderful opportunity for Wokingham children with social, emotional and mental health and/or an autism spectrum disorder to have state of the art specialized facilities close to home.

"We are pleased to continue to work with Maiden Erlegh Trust, who already run several schools within Wokingham borough, and are very happy to have been part of the partnership that has resulted in this excellent opportunity for Wokingham borough children with special educational needs and disabilities to stay within the borough for their schooling.

"We know that keeping children as close to home as possible has a beneficial impact on their learning and development, so having this new school in the borough is excellent news for us."

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The school will be operated by the Maiden Erleigh Trust and wholly funded by the Department for Education. It is set to open by September 2022.

Cllr Ashley Pearce, Reading’s lead councillor for education, said: "The Maiden Erlegh Trust has a proven track record of running schools in Reading and working well with education authorities.

"The number of children with SEND has increased significantly in Reading in recent years and similar patterns of growth have been seen in neighbouring authorities.

"I welcome the progress of this new special free school which will result in more Reading children receiving the specialist education they need closer to home."