Funding worth more than £505,000 to purchase essential furniture and equipment for the new Orchard School in Newark has been approved by Nottinghamshire County Council.

The investment was agreed at the first-ever virtual Policy Committee as part of the latest report on the ambitious £17m project to build a new school and day service centre at the London Road site in Balderton. 

The new school, which will replace existing school buildings, is due to open later this year and will have 140 places for children with special educational needs, with capacity to extend to accommodate 170 places in the future.

Plans for the school include interactive classrooms, a new hydrotherapy pool, specialist play areas to support the children’s needs and associated landscaping.

The wider £17m project includes a new day service centre which will accommodate the different needs of adult service users. Councillors also agreed to additional £226,000 funding towards new equipment and furniture at the Centre. 

Councillor Philip Owen, Children and Young People’s Committee Chairman, said: “The new school building will provide state-of-the-art learning facilities for children who have special educational needs.

It will be a place where the staff will be able to work with the children and young people and encourage them to reach their full potential.

Therefore, we need to ensure that the equipment and furniture needed matches the wonderful new building we are providing for pupils.” 

He continued: “We want to do everything we can to ensure the new school delivers outstanding service provision for children for many years to come. I very much look forward to better times when the school finally opens to the pupils and staff later this year.”