Joseph Norton Academy
Kirklees Council and Wellspring Academy Trust are working in partnership to create a purpose-built special school for Joseph Norton Academy.
The new school will have 132 places for children and young people who have an Education Health and Care Plan with Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH) difficulties. Joseph Norton Academy currently offers 63 places from a site in Scissett.
The pupils currently enjoy the semi-rural location and the curriculum has been enhanced by the addition of a school farm. But the buildings are dated, and any further developments are restricted due to the site. The children also travel a significant distance to attend school.
The new development will create additional special school places for pupils aged 4-18 years (Key Stage 1 to Key Stage 5) within a high-quality building, which is more fit for purpose and able to support the wide range of pupil needs - plus introduce co-education opportunities for a wider age range.
The new school will be built on the site of the old Deighton Centre on Deighton Road, Huddersfield.
The school caters for children from across Kirklees. The central location of the proposed development means travel times will be reduced for many pupils.
The site also offers greater flexibility in modes of transport with available bus, train and cycle infrastructure close by than the current site reducing the reliance on car travel.
As with any new development, there will be an increase in traffic to and from the school.
The development has been designed to accommodate the drop-off and pick-up arrangements for pupils, with a large drop off zone to facilitate efficient arrival and departure. The car park has also been designed so that queueing vehicles waiting to pick up do not queue back on to the local highway network and sufficient parking is provided on the site.
Currently, the council does not have enough special school places for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities. This means some children have to go to school outside of Kirklees or to independent schools, which are very expensive for the council and not always suited to the best needs of children and families.
The new school building will increase the number of places available at Joseph Norton Academy from 63 to 132.
The increase in places cannot be achieved at their current site in Scissett. The current school buildings are dated, with any further developments being restricted due to the site.
Consultation
Thank you for everyone who took part in the consultation. Your comments were gathered and are included in the Statement of Community Consultation. The full planning application is available on the Planning Application page.