SEND and Alternative Provision Capital Programmes summer 2025 update

Find out about our recently completed, ongoing and upcoming projects

We are delighted to share the latest progress on projects across our Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Capital Programmes. The AP Capital Programme aims to consolidate and modernise nine existing AP provisions into five high-quality sites, increasing capacity from 199 to 240 places across the county. The SEND Capital Programme will expand the maintained specialist education estate by around 2,404 additional places by 2030, and improve existing facilities equivalent to 633 places.

Recently completed projects

• Fordway Centre, Ashford – new short-stay (AP) school building

Projects completing in June 2025

• Guildford County School, Guildford

Ongoing projects

• Hopescourt School, Walton-on-Thames
• Ashford Park Primary School, Ashford

Projects due to commence this summer

• Pond Meadow School, Guildford – new teaching block and external works
• The Hythe Primary School – new SEN (Special Educational Needs) Unit building
• St John the Baptist School, Woking – new SEN Unit building
• Bramley Oak School, Bramley – new teaching block and ancillary space

Completed projects

Fordway Centre

The Fordway Centre provides a calm, structured environment for up to 24 primary-school-aged children who struggle to thrive in mainstream settings. With small class sizes, a high staff-to-pupil ratio, and a strong focus on emotional wellbeing, the new facilities include group rooms, calm spaces, a community kitchen, an activity room, and outdoor play areas designed to foster both academic and personal growth.

The school welcomed its first pupils into the new building at the beginning of June. On seeing the school’s new activity room, one child said, “Now we can do sports even if it's raining!”. The much-improved facilities create more opportunities for the pupils, whatever the weather. Read more in our press release.

Image of the newly rebuilt Fordway Centre (above)

Image of the old Fordway Centre building (above)

Ongoing

Guildford County School

Guildford County School’s new 25 place SEN unit for autistic children aged 11-16 years is progressing well. The new classrooms in ‘The Loft’ are being fitted out, and the school plans to celebrate the opening of the building on 30 June.

Image of 'The Loft' under consutrction at Guildford County School (above)

Hopescourt School

The specialist free school for up to 200 pupils with additional needs and disabilities is really starting to take shape. The contractors are beginning to install cladding and windows. Water and electrics have been connected to site and the car park and landscaping are progressing well. The project is due to be completed by March 2026.

Image of progress at Hopescourt School (above)

Ashford Park Primary School

This project is the construction of a new bespoke standalone SEN block which will provide the school with space for 25 pupils including classrooms with direct access to external play areas, group and therapy rooms. The building is now weathertight, internal fit out is ongoing and the project is on track to be completed in September 2025.

What’s next

Pond Meadow School

This project is in the pre-construction phase. It will see the delivery of a brand new Special Educational Needs (SEN) teaching block sited at the rear of the existing school. The project will also see the delivery of an expanded car park and site wide soft landscape upgrades. The new SEN block will provide 50 places for post-16 students and is anticipated to be completed in August 2026.

Rendering of new teaching block at Pond Meadow School (above)

The Hythe Primary School

The existing school is a mainstream school with 25 place SEN Unit. We are constructing a new standalone block to increase the SEN unit to 41 places. The build is forecast to complete in May 2026.

We are anticipating that in the next couple of months we will start construction work on the new 30-place SEN unit at St John the Baptist School in Woking. We also expect to start the extension of Bramley Oak Academy, in Bramley, to provide a total of 104 specialist school places.