New school and better support demanded by town’s MP
Shrewsbury's MP is calling for a new school to be built in the town while renewing her demand for greatly improved support services for children and young people with special educational needs.
“I want to see a brand new school established in the north of Shrewsbury,” said the town’s MP, Julia Buckley. “We need to improve school provision generally in that part of the town.
“Two schools have been demolished in the north of Shrewsbury and whilst lots of new houses have been built and planned, the missing link is the infrastructure to support the additional families. A good example of this is secondary school provision. We have examples of 11-year-olds needing to catch two separate buses to access schools in the south of the town and it’s time every child in Shrewsbury had access to a great state school.
“I’m working hard to make this happen.”
Mrs Buckley said she has arranged a meeting with the Regional Director from the Department for Education to look more deeply into this, and has also sought detailed information and statistics around the possibility of a new school in the town by tabling a Written Parliamentary Question on the subject.
“Meanwhile, it’s well known that there is a crisis facing support services for those with special education needs and disabilities (SEND) and I have welcomed the Education Select Committee’s new inquiry into this which will identify and push through actions to greatly improve this appalling situation.”
The new inquiry was launched as a damning report into SEND services spoke of ‘a lost generation’ being let down by outcomes for children stalled, families’ confidence undermined, and two-fifths of local authorities staring down bankruptcy.
The MP said: “Believe me, I know from my casework that the SEND crisis is particularly acute here in Shrewsbury, and something needs to be done urgently, and I would strongly encourage anyone to consider responding to the Committee's call for evidence. The more evidence the Committee has, the better.
“As many families across Shrewsbury and beyond know all too well, we desperately need to find solutions to the huge challenges facing SEND support, including how outcomes can be improved for children and young people,” said Mrs Buckley. She urged affected families to submit their evidence to the inquiry.
Mrs Buckley said: “You can read more about this inquiry, including the terms of reference and how to submit evidence by searching online for ‘Solving the SEND crisis’.
The deadline for evidence is Thursday, February 6 at 6pm.
