Major expansion of specialist school provision planned amid growing demand

Nation.Cymru staff

Hundreds of additional specialist school places could be created under plans to meet growing demand for support for children and young people with additional learning needs.

Cardiff Council is proposing a major expansion of its Additional Learning Needs (ALN) provision, including nine new specialist resource bases, the expansion of two existing bases and increased capacity at four special schools across the city.

The next phase of the programme will go before the council’s cabinet for approval on September 17, following a public consultation which showed strong support for the proposals.

The plans include new specialist resource bases for pupils with autism and social communication needs, complex learning needs, and emotional health and wellbeing needs.

Additional Welsh-medium provision would also be created, while capacity would be increased at Meadowbank, Ty Gwyn, Woodlands and Greenhill special schools.

The council says the expansion would create hundreds of additional specialist places from the 2026/27 academic year onwards, allowing more children to receive appropriate support closer to home.

It follows an earlier phase of the programme which is already under way.

Refurbishment and upgrade work at 15 schools is expected to provide an additional 334 specialist places in autumn 2026, with a further 120 planned in subsequent years.

The council says these will include additional places both within special schools and in specialist resource bases attached to mainstream schools.

A consultation on the latest proposals was held during February and March.

More than 80% of respondents to each of three wider stakeholder surveys supported the proposals overall, while formal responses from organisations including school governing bodies and Estyn were also broadly supportive, subject to the way the expansion is implemented.

Support

Cardiff Council cabinet member for education Cllr Sarah Merry said: “Every child and young person deserves access to the support they need to learn, thrive and reach their full potential.

“These proposals represent a significant investment in Cardiff’s specialist education provision and will help ensure more learners with additional learning needs can access high-quality support in their local communities.

“We are grateful to everyone who took part in the consultation. The feedback received has helped shape our plans and confirms strong support for increasing specialist provision across the city.

“By expanding both English and Welsh-medium provision, we can better meet growing demand while ensuring children and young people receive the right support, in the right place, at the right time.”

The proposals will first be considered by the council’s Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee on September 8 before going to cabinet for a decision on September 17.

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