Woodlands Meed College rebuild

Project updates on rebuilding the college.

Latest and background

Updated: 24 July 2024

Latest news:

The new building at Woodlands Meed College has now been handed over and the school have commenced moving into the site.

Pupils will soon be able to make use of a host of new facilities at the college and the multi-million pound development will soon move into its next phase which will include the completion of an all-weather pitch, and an outside courtyard and amphitheatre where children can sit together and hold sporting and social events.

Cllr Jacquie Russell, West Sussex County Council Cabinet Member for Children, Young People, Learning and Skills, said: “This is a crucial moment in what has been a very long journey to deliver new facilities at Woodlands Meed.

“We’ve faced many challenges and setbacks along the way, but it is important to now look ahead to the benefits this provision will bring to children with special educational needs and disabilities. We appreciate the frustrations of parents, pupils and staff and would like to thank everyone for their continued patience throughout this process.

“Despite the challenging nature of this project, we are ultimately proud of what has been achieved and know that these fantastic facilities will help children at Woodlands Meed achieve their potential for many years to come.”

Background

West Sussex County Council has allocated £21.6million to a major project to rebuild Woodlands Meed College.

The new facilities will significantly improve facilities for pupils who have special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) at the Burgess Hill college.

Independent surveys carried out last year showed that the current buildings are safe, but the facilities need to be upgraded and more space is required for the college’s 100 pupils.

Planning permission has been granted to create the new building on the college playing field. The County Council has worked with an architect with extensive experience of designing SEND schools to design a new building which will:

  • include 12 new classrooms and specialist areas for design and technology, music, science and food technology
  • meet all the required school building regulations (known as BB104)
  • provide students with significantly more internal space
  • include high quality sporting facilities including all weather pitches, and a 2-court sports hall and accessible changing facilities
  • include a new dining hall and kitchen, a common room and a range of therapy spaces along with personal care facilities, staff offices and welfare areas
  • have a new hydrotherapy pool
  • have a host of new outside learning and play areas including classrooms, an outside gym, planting areas, and courtyard and amphitheatre space
  • be more suitable for pupils who have mobility issues
  • have optimum comfort levels for students and staff, the design carefully considered around ventilation, cooling and heating systems
  • have solar panels on the roof making the facilities energy efficient and reduce energy costs for the college.

You can see the exciting plans in our presentation and short video below:

News items

Videos

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Background

Claire Barton, architect and partner of Haverstock provides some background information about the project.

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