The official opening of the new St Lawrence School in Horncastle is being celebrated at a special event.
On Tuesday 29 October, pupils, staff and partners will come together for an opening celebration for the newly-built school. The new school has 17 classrooms, three of which are designed for pupils with profound and multiple learning disabilities. In addition, there is a new hall and studio, allowing the school to offer rebound therapy and physical education. This is complemented by spaces for soft play, sensory play, physiotherapy, life skills, social recreation and calming.
Reorganised and improved outdoor play spaces include a sensory garden, horticulture area, formal and informal sport pitches and outdoor exercise equipment. Finally, the site has been redesigned to provide improved drop off and pick up facilities and increased parking for staff and visitors.
Cllr Mrs Patricia Bradwell OBE, executive member for children’s services, said: “Over the last few years, the council has invested around £100m in improving and expanding special schools across the county. Horncastle St Lawrence is the latest in a long list of success stories we’ve had to celebrate as a result of the project, and I’m sure the much-improved facilities will make a life-changing difference to pupils.”
Lea Mason, CEO of INSPIRE Connected Communities Trust, added: “As a community we are extremely pleased with the new building at St Lawrence. As a trust we are enormously grateful to Lincolnshire County Council, who have worked in partnership with us, providing significant investment as part of their ‘Building Communities of Specialist Provision’ strategy, which has enabled this provision.
“Through our trust shared values of community, connection and communication, our aim is continually and consistently, to assist our pupils and students in reaching their full potential. This new build supports our skilled staff in delivery of our personalised and purposeful curriculum, in providing access to appropriate, purpose-built spaces, both inside and out.
“The impact of this work is far reaching and will continue to be for many years to come. Our pupils and students both current and into the future, now have access to a purpose-built and considered environment, that will continue to provide many learning opportunities around complex needs, including access to world of work experiences, not only for our students, but also the local community.”
Tonya Stokes, headteacher of St Lawrence School, said: “The new school has made a dramatic difference in terms of purposeful spaces for teaching and learning. Specialist spaces allow for groups of learners to really focus on specific areas of learning e.g. arts, food tech, library and having these spaces is having a positive impact on the delivery of the curriculum.
"The space within school means that our most complex learners can access different areas of school freely. The addition of specific sensory spaces is meeting the needs of a wide range of students and enables them to have increased sensory input to support their readiness for learning.
“Access to group rooms means that teaching can be focused in small groups, which supports high-quality delivery. The width of the corridors and space has really supported positive transitions and the whole school feels much calmer! Students are eagerly awaiting the further development of the outdoor spaces once the grass is fully grown, and this will also enhance our outdoor learning offer.”
The new school was designed by Kier Group, with the construction work carried out by Willmott Dixon.