SALISBURY could be set to open its first “centre of excellence” dedicated to pupils with special educational needs or disabilities, as part of a £20million investment plan from Wiltshire Council.

In proposals put forward earlier this week, and after almost three years of consultations, the council announced plans to open two schools in the county to act as centres of excellence for special educational needs or disabled (SEND) children.

Currently, many SEND pupils living in and around Salisbury are placed in mainstream schools without dedicated care and support, or forced to travel each day to existing SEND schools as far away as Calne.

Some are unable to attend school at all due to difficulties obtaining dedicated SEND places, or unsuitable placements in mainstream schools

Lucy Mancey’s nine-year-old son has been in mainstream education since he was four, but she said his education, health and care plan (EHCP), official documents noting a child’s special needs and outlining the extra support they should receive, was not always met by the schools he attended.

Because of his autism and ADHD, Lucy’s son had difficulties in mainstream lessons and large classes, which led to his school saying they could only let him come in if he worked in isolation, where he remained for three months.

Lucy said her son developed “a lot of anxiety-based issues” as well as physical ticks after this period, and she withdrew him from the school.

At the end of the 2018 summer term, Wiltshire Council told Lucy her son could have a place at a new SEND unit they were planning to open in Figheldean in October, but this was never opened.

She was then told there were plans to create a new SEND unit at Sarum Academy in January, but this too looks as though it will be delayed.

Vicki Wilson has also struggled for years to find a dedicated place for her son, and after spending £10,000 challenging the council, he has now been given a place at a Lyndhurst school, where they must travel each day.

The proposals for a new dedicated school in Salisbury will mean creating a new and extended campus at Exeter House, an existing centre that caters for children with severe, profound and multiple learning difficulties.

It is hoped the new school would open in 2023.

Laura Mayes, cabinet member for children’s services, said: “This vision means we concentrate on providing our pupils with the best facilities, the best teaching and the best learning environment where they can thrive.”

The proposals will be put before Wiltshire Council’s cabinet, and if they are agreed, statutory notices will be published for formal consultation.