Proposal to move Furze Down School sixth form

Feedback updated 11 Oct 2023

We asked

We asked for views on whether you agreed with the proposal to move Furze Down School sixth form to the short breaks day service building in Buckingham (also known as the Buckingham Opportunities Centre).

The consultation ran from 26 June to 6 August 2023.

You said

We received 48 responses to the consultation:

44 online survey responses
4 email and postal responses

Of the 48 who responded, 35 (73%) were in agreement with the proposal to move Furze Down sixth form to the short breaks day service building in Buckingham; 10 (21%) did not agree; and, 3 (6%) didn’t know or didn’t say.

Of the 48 responses received 45 (94%) said that they understood why the proposal had been made to move the sixth form. 1 (2%) said that they didn’t understand the proposal and 2 (4%) that they didn’t know.

We did

Together with the Governing Board of Furze Down School, we have considered the responses to the consultation.

In view of the level of support in favour of the proposal, on Wednesday 11 October 2023 we published a statutory proposal for moving Furze Down sixth form to the short breaks day service building in Buckingham.

Overview

We want to hear your views on a proposal to move Furze Down School sixth form to the short breaks day service building in Buckingham (also known as the Buckingham Opportunities Centre).

This proposal would allow:

Furze Down School to add 26 places for pupils aged 4 to 16 years old
the short breaks day service in Buckingham to continue providing adult services from a smaller area of the current building

Page updated on:

3 July 2023 to include further information about Travel to Furze Down School sixth form in Buckingham
11 July 2023 to include additional questions and answers following events on 4 and 5 July 2023

Furze Down School, Winslow is a special school for communication and interaction. The school supports children and young people with special educational needs.

The short breaks day service in Buckingham provides specialist support for adults with learning disabilities, autism, dementia or mental health needs. It is one of 7 council-run short breaks services in Buckinghamshire.

A review of the short breaks day service building in Buckingham found it was not being fully used – with space and capacity for a wider use. On average, 3 to 6 adults per day currently use the building for day services.

We are proposing to move the 40 sixth form pupils from Furze Down School to the short breaks day service building in Buckingham.

This proposal would support sixth form pupils with:

developing independence and preparing for adulthood – including travel skills
an integrated supported employment and learning provision
access to work related activities in Buckingham

Under our proposal, no areas of the building or site would be shared:

the building currently used by the Buckingham short breaks day service would be divided – about 70% of it would be used for Furze Down’s sixth form
the short breaks day service and Furze Down sixth form would each have their own entrance, secure areas and external area

There will be no staff redundancies as part of this proposal.

Travel to Furze Down School sixth form in Buckingham More Information

The criteria for eligibility for transport assistance for sixth form aged students with SEND is set out in the Council’s Post-16 Transport Policy Statement 2023 to 2024. The Post-16 Statement is reviewed annually and transport provision for young people aged 16-19 with SEND is detailed on the Local Offer.

Under our current Post-16 Statement, sixth form aged students with SEND who are eligible for home to school transport assistance can apply for a Personal Transport Budget, to allow families to make their own travel arrangements, or they can apply for Council-arranged transport for a fee.

Those who use Council-arranged transport will be required to make a contribution to the cost of the transport the Council provides. The contribution is based on the number of days travelled per week. The Post-16 SEND transport contribution costs for the 2023 to 2024 academic year are set out on our website and these fees are reviewed annually.

Eligible students who live closer to the Buckingham centre, north of the Winslow site, will have their transport needs assessed on a case by case basis and it is expected that pupils who live locally to Buckingham and who can travel independently will use public transport and / or will walk to the centre.

Students who can travel by public transport could apply for a disabled person’s bus pass, which may require a payment to travel before 9am on weekdays.

Eligible sixth form students who live close to and to the south of Furze Down School in Winslow, regardless of how they arrive at the Winslow site (e.g. by family car, public bus, or on Council-arranged transport), are expected to be supported to make the onward journey, supervised by Furze Down School staff, to and from the Buckingham centre either by school minibus or public transport. Currently it is planned that the school would cover costs for the school minibus from the Winslow site to the Buckingham site.

Increasing need for social, emotional and mental health support More Information

Over the last 5 years in Buckinghamshire, there has been a:

50% (1,805 pupils) increase in the number of pupils with special educational needs and disabilities with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP)
64% (1,424 pupils) increase in children and young people with communication and interaction needs and social, emotional and mental health (SEMH) needs – this is the most increasing need

Over the next 5 years in Buckinghamshire, we are expecting a further:

32% increase in the number of pupils with an EHCP
42% increase in the number of children and young people with communication and interaction needs and SEMH needs

What this proposal would mean for Furze Down School, Winslow

A key priority of our SEND and Inclusion Strategy 2021 to 2023 is to provide more places for pupils with communication and interaction needs.

Moving Furze Down School sixth form would help achieve this by:

adding 26 places for pupils aged 4 to 16 years old at Furze Down School
allowing all specialist teaching areas at Furze Down School to be used – some are currently being used for general teaching

What this proposal would mean for the short breaks day service in Buckingham

Adult services would continue from the short breaks day service building in Buckingham.

The smaller area of the building would not impact the quality of service provided. The service could also support additional adults.

If the proposal happens, the short breaks day service would not be located at the Buckingham site whilst building works took place.

However, all adults currently using the short breaks day service would:

be able to use alternative services / support
meet with staff to discuss and agree alternative services / support to meet their needs

Events to find out more

We are hosting two events to find out more about the proposal:

Presentation for parents / carers – Tuesday 4 July 2023, 4pm to 6pm
- at Furze Down School, Verney Road, Winslow, Buckinghamshire, MK18 3BL
- Furze Down School can supervise current pupils if their parents / carers want to attend this presentation – please email the school if you need supervision: office@furzedownschool.org.uk

Drop-in session for parents / carers, short break service users and residents – Wednesday 5 July 2023, 4pm to 6pm
- at Buckingham Opportunities Centre, Well Street, Buckingham, MK18 1EN

How to have your say

You can tell us your views in one of the following ways:

complete the online survey using the link at the end of the page
complete, and return, a printed version of the survey (PDF 0.23MB)
email us at FurzeDownandBuckinghamConsultation@buckinghamshire.gov.uk

If you have any questions about this consultation, please email us at FurzeDownandBuckinghamConsultation@buckinghamshire.gov.uk.

Please tell us your views by midnight on Sunday 6 August 2023.

What happens next

With the Governing Board of Furze Down School, we will consider all the responses we receive and decide whether to move Furze Down School sixth form.

If the decision is taken to proceed, the next stage is the publication of a statutory notice.

Statutory notice More Information

The statutory notice is a more formal opportunity to give your views by submitting formal objections or support to the proposal.

This stage runs for 4 weeks. If the decision is taken to proceed, we would expect the statutory notice to run from 11 September to 8 October 2023.

The responses received would be considered by the Governing Board and Buckinghamshire Council.

Final decision on the proposal More Information

The Leader of Buckinghamshire Council, with the Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing, would take the decision on the final outcome. We would expect this decision in December 2023.

If the decision is taken to proceed, Furze Down sixth form will be moved and Furze Down School will be expanded ready for September 2024.

Privacy

We will use the information you provide here only for this activity. We will store the information securely in line with data protection laws and will not share or publish any personal details. For more information about data and privacy, please see our Privacy Policy.

If you have questions about data and privacy, please email us on dataprotection@buckinghamshire.gov.uk. Or write to our Data Protection Officer at Buckinghamshire Council, The Gateway, Gatehouse Road, Aylesbury, HP19 8FF.

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