Proposals to expand Oak Grove College

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Summary of statutory proposals

The proposal is to expand Oak Grove College, by creating a satellite provision at The Pines, a former Adult Services property. The satellite provision would create up to 60 additional specialist school places increasing the school’s planned places from 278 to 338, with the number increasing gradually over several years.

It is also proposed that this project includes for the replacement of a modular classroom which is currently used by Oak Grove but is placed on an adjacent County Council site.

Oak Grove College is a Special School in Worthing offering SEND provision for children and young people with Special Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND). The school offers generic SEND provision for those aged between 11 and 16, and complex needs provision for those aged between 16 and 19. All pupils attending the school have an education, health and care plan. The school size has increased over recent years with a new four class modular block added in 2022. Current planned places at Oak Grove are 278.

The Pines site is owned by West Sussex County Council and was formerly used for Adults with Learning Difficulties. It is approximately 1 mile from Oak Grove College.

The satellite provision at the Pines will accommodate up to 60 pupils with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities increasing the schools overall planned place numbers to 338 and will be managed by Oak Grove College.

Need for Change

Notwithstanding the recent expansion in 2022, there is an ongoing shortfall of specialist places for young people in West Sussex and an urgent requirement to provide additional places. This is in line with what is being seen nationally - see Support for children and young people with special educational needs - NAO report (opens in new window) West Sussex special schools are operating above capacity. Year on year the number of children who require a place in a special school, but do not get one, is growing. Special schools have grown on physical sites which have not grown, which has increased pressure on the schools. The complexity of needs of pupils has also increased resulting in an increase in staff, which has also put more pressure on the schools. The County Council has a statutory duty to provide sufficient school places for all children who need a place.

In West Sussex there has been a significant growth in the number of children and young people with Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs). The county currently maintains over 10,000 EHCPs. Whilst we would expect most children and young people with an EHCP to be supported within a maintained mainstream school setting, there is increased demand for specialist provision and approved place numbers of all the Council’s maintained special schools have been exceeded.

Increasing provision for children and young people with SEND through the creation of additional places will assist with the aim of enabling children to attend school locally. Consequently, this will reduce the number of children and young people with SEND moving from maintained schools and academies into costly education provision in the Independent and Non-Maintained Special School sector.

Staffing

The Local Authority does not envisage the school changing its ethos and mission. The school provides an outstanding education, with high-quality teaching and a nurturing school ethos that empowers each student to achieve their personal best. Staff are our most valuable resource, and it is important that should there be any need for changes these are dealt with fairly and sensitively. The County Council follows a national framework on school reorganisation called Making significant changes ('prescribed alterations') to maintained schools (opens in new window), and will work with those involved to support all staff through the process of change.

Staff will be based at The Pines and where appropriate they will transfer between sites accompanying pupils so they can access school events and therapy provision.

Statutory Notices

The public consultation is a two-stage process. An informal consultation took place over a four week period in June and July 2025 in relation to the creation of a satellite site at The Pines for Oak Grove College. At the end of this period, and following analysis of the comments received, the Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, Learning and Skills, Jacquie Russell, took the decision to publish statutory notices for these projects. We are now entering the formal statutory notice period for the creation of a satellite site for Oak Grove College which will run for a five week period from 2 October 2025 - 6 November 2025.

Publication of statutory proposals provides the opportunity for the public to submit comments regarding the proposal during a time-limited representation period. Once the deadline for providing representations has passed and any feedback received has been considered, the Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, Learning and Skills will be asked to determine whether the creation of a satellite site for Oak Grove College should proceed. We anticipate the final decision to enable the creation of a satellite site will be taken in December 2025.

Full details of the statutory proposal can be found in the documents folder, a printed copy may also be obtained by emailing the address below.

Alternate formats and accessibility

If you require any of this information in an alternative format, then please contact us by phone 0330 222 5083 or via email at laura.tomlin@westsussex.gov.uk and we will assist you. If you are deaf or hard of hearing and have an NGT texting app installed on your computer, laptop or smartphone, you can contact us on 18001 0330 222 5083.

Please note, you can use the Google Translate function to access this project in a range of different languages. The Google Translate widget can be found at the top left-hand side of the project page, where it sits just above the black West Sussex County Council ribbon.

For more information about the accessibility of this website, please see our Accessibility tab (opens in new window) at the foot of the page.

Survey web browser compatibility

Please use one of the browsers below when completing the survey to ensure it looks and works as it should. These are:

· Microsoft Edge version 86 and above

· Chrome version 86 and above

· Firefox version 78 and above

· Safari version 14 and above

Summary of statutory proposals

The proposal is to expand Oak Grove College, by creating a satellite provision at The Pines, a former Adult Services property. The satellite provision would create up to 60 additional specialist school places increasing the school’s planned places from 278 to 338, with the number increasing gradually over several years.

It is also proposed that this project includes for the replacement of a modular classroom which is currently used by Oak Grove but is placed on an adjacent County Council site.

Oak Grove College is a Special School in Worthing offering SEND provision for children and young people with Special Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND). The school offers generic SEND provision for those aged between 11 and 16, and complex needs provision for those aged between 16 and 19. All pupils attending the school have an education, health and care plan. The school size has increased over recent years with a new four class modular block added in 2022. Current planned places at Oak Grove are 278.

The Pines site is owned by West Sussex County Council and was formerly used for Adults with Learning Difficulties. It is approximately 1 mile from Oak Grove College.

The satellite provision at the Pines will accommodate up to 60 pupils with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities increasing the schools overall planned place numbers to 338 and will be managed by Oak Grove College.

Need for Change

Notwithstanding the recent expansion in 2022, there is an ongoing shortfall of specialist places for young people in West Sussex and an urgent requirement to provide additional places. This is in line with what is being seen nationally - see Support for children and young people with special educational needs - NAO report (opens in new window) West Sussex special schools are operating above capacity. Year on year the number of children who require a place in a special school, but do not get one, is growing. Special schools have grown on physical sites which have not grown, which has increased pressure on the schools. The complexity of needs of pupils has also increased resulting in an increase in staff, which has also put more pressure on the schools. The County Council has a statutory duty to provide sufficient school places for all children who need a place.

In West Sussex there has been a significant growth in the number of children and young people with Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs). The county currently maintains over 10,000 EHCPs. Whilst we would expect most children and young people with an EHCP to be supported within a maintained mainstream school setting, there is increased demand for specialist provision and approved place numbers of all the Council’s maintained special schools have been exceeded.

Increasing provision for children and young people with SEND through the creation of additional places will assist with the aim of enabling children to attend school locally. Consequently, this will reduce the number of children and young people with SEND moving from maintained schools and academies into costly education provision in the Independent and Non-Maintained Special School sector.

Staffing

The Local Authority does not envisage the school changing its ethos and mission. The school provides an outstanding education, with high-quality teaching and a nurturing school ethos that empowers each student to achieve their personal best. Staff are our most valuable resource, and it is important that should there be any need for changes these are dealt with fairly and sensitively. The County Council follows a national framework on school reorganisation called Making significant changes ('prescribed alterations') to maintained schools (opens in new window), and will work with those involved to support all staff through the process of change.

Staff will be based at The Pines and where appropriate they will transfer between sites accompanying pupils so they can access school events and therapy provision.

Statutory Notices

The public consultation is a two-stage process. An informal consultation took place over a four week period in June and July 2025 in relation to the creation of a satellite site at The Pines for Oak Grove College. At the end of this period, and following analysis of the comments received, the Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, Learning and Skills, Jacquie Russell, took the decision to publish statutory notices for these projects. We are now entering the formal statutory notice period for the creation of a satellite site for Oak Grove College which will run for a five week period from 2 October 2025 - 6 November 2025.

Publication of statutory proposals provides the opportunity for the public to submit comments regarding the proposal during a time-limited representation period. Once the deadline for providing representations has passed and any feedback received has been considered, the Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, Learning and Skills will be asked to determine whether the creation of a satellite site for Oak Grove College should proceed. We anticipate the final decision to enable the creation of a satellite site will be taken in December 2025.

Full details of the statutory proposal can be found in the documents folder, a printed copy may also be obtained by emailing the address below.

Alternate formats and accessibility

If you require any of this information in an alternative format, then please contact us by phone 0330 222 5083 or via email at laura.tomlin@westsussex.gov.uk and we will assist you. If you are deaf or hard of hearing and have an NGT texting app installed on your computer, laptop or smartphone, you can contact us on 18001 0330 222 5083.

Please note, you can use the Google Translate function to access this project in a range of different languages. The Google Translate widget can be found at the top left-hand side of the project page, where it sits just above the black West Sussex County Council ribbon.

For more information about the accessibility of this website, please see our Accessibility tab (opens in new window) at the foot of the page.

Survey web browser compatibility

Please use one of the browsers below when completing the survey to ensure it looks and works as it should. These are:

· Microsoft Edge version 86 and above

· Chrome version 86 and above

· Firefox version 78 and above

· Safari version 14 and above

Page last updated: 01 Oct 2025, 06:32 PM