Work begins on £4.8m school expansion where demand has soared

Work has begun on a £4.8 million expansion of a Blackpool school where pupil numbers have tripled in the past five years. Town hall planners approved the development in March for a two-storey classroom block at Highfurlong Special School on Blackpool Old Road, which will be linked to existing classrooms.

Funding is coming from the council in order to increase capacity at the school which caters for pupils with a range of special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) from across the Fylde coast. Highfurlong grabbed the national spotlight when it was named School of the Year at the National School Awards in 2021.

Now six new classrooms will enable capacity to more than double to 180 pupils reducing the need to use out-of-borough placements. There will also be a specialist teaching room for lessons such as science, food technology and life skills.

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The ground floor of the new building will include facilities for post-16 students, alongside a new kitchen, as well as a community cafe designed for post-19 students to gain employment skills.

Head teacher Neill Oldham said: “Following Highfurlong School’s sustained success and national recognition, we are delighted this expansion of the school estate will enable us to offer outstanding education and specialist facilities to more children and families in the local area. The capacity of the building has been overstretched for some time so this work will give us the space we need to continue to grow and meet the demand for places that we have faced over recent years.

“We are also very excited the new space will allow us to bring in the local community too with a cafe and