Bradstow formal consultation - proposal to close (discontinue) a Community Special School and Children’s Homes

Overview

Between 6 January and 16 February 2025 Wandsworth Council carried out a public consultation on the proposal to close Bradstow Community Special School and Children’s Homes. You can view the consultation here.

After carefully considering all responses and feedback received, Wandsworth Council has made the difficult decision to proceed to the formal stage of the statutorily regulated process for the discontinuance (closure) of Bradstow Community Special School, with the associated closure of the Children’s Homes in Broadstairs, Kent, at the end of December 2025.

Why are we proposing this change?

Wandsworth Council is committed to supporting children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) locally, keeping them educated and cared for within Wandsworth or as close to their homes as possible. This sits alongside the need to retain a sustainable school system that meets the needs of all our children.

The council has invested £41m in expanding SEND provision in Wandsworth creating over 271 places since 2021, of which £34m is on a purpose-built expansion of Paddock Secondary and Sixth Form School to improve our local provision for children with complex special educational needs linked to their diagnosis of Autism and severe learning disability. A primary aim for the development of Paddock School is to enable Wandsworth children to remain in their local community to enable them to successfully retain their close links to family and friends which can be lost if they are placed at a significant distance from home. Although this may not benefit the Wandsworth children currently placed at Bradstow, lack of local sufficiency has historically meant that we have needed to place at Bradstow, and so this investment is part of our future planning for children who present with similar needs to keep them local.

Bradstow School operates within a challenging financial landscape and the unwillingness of some councils to pay the levels of fees needed to maintain the quality of education and financial viability of the school has forced Wandsworth council to look at other options.

Wandsworth Council worked with Kent County Council for a 3 year period, to explore the potential for transferring the provision to Kent County Council. However, in October 2024, Kent County Council decided not to proceed with a transfer.

After the completion of the pre-publication consultation, Wandsworth Council agreed to pause the statutory process on closure to allow the governors of Bradstow the opportunity to engage with academy trusts and select a suitable partner with whom to work to secure the future of the school.

Despite fully supporting this process, Wandsworth Council were notified on the 29 July 2025 that the Department for Education (DfE) was not able to approve the application with Cygnus Academy Trust. Given this academisation application decision, the impact of falling pupil numbers, which has worsened the school’s financial position, and the aged debt the school already holds, Wandsworth has now taken the difficult decision to re-instate the statutory process and formally consult on closure.

The decision to formally consult on the closure of the school was not taken lightly and was one we have collectively worked hard to avoid. However, to ensure as a council we effectively manage Wandsworth resources and to protect the long-term interests of Wandsworth children, this is the right decision for us to now take. This proposal is not a reflection of the quality of the current leadership, education, and care provided at Bradstow. It is one that is purely driven by the unwillingness of some councils to pay fees at a level needed to ensure the school remains viable, particularly with a cohort of only 13 children (2 from Wandsworth) attending the school as of July 2025.

The local authority will consult with pupils, parents and carers, staff, the governing board, other local schools and trade unions. We are also consulting with other groups as well as the wider local community.

It is important that we hear your views and those of anyone affected. Please ensure you read the following documents so that you have all the information you need to respond.

Consultation document

Equality Impact Assessment

Frequently asked questions 

The following documents may also be useful:

Statutory guidance for opening and closing maintained schools

How to share your views

It is important that we hear your views and those of anyone else affected, and we have arranged a number of opportunities to do so. The local authority will consult with pupils, parents and carers, staff, the governing board, other local schools and trade unions. We are also consulting with other groups as well as the wider local community.

Wandsworth Council will begin consulting on the 1 September 2025 for 4 weeks to get views on the outlined proposals. The consultation will close at midnight on the 28 September 2025. Support, objections or comments should be provided within four weeks of the publication date of this proposal (by 28 September 2025) online, by email or by post as follows:

• We would encourage you to complete the online survey as the most efficient and secure way to give your views. Please click on the Online Survey link below.  

• You can email comments to consult@wandsworth.gov.uk – please use the heading ‘Bradstow Formal Consultation’.

• You can send comments by post to the following address: Bradstow Formal Consultation, Wandsworth Local Authority, Children’s Services’ Executive Support Team, 5th Floor, Wandsworth Town Hall, Wandsworth High Street, London, SW18 2PU

If you need to request a paper copy, a different language or format, or if you need any support to take part in the consultation, please call or text the Children’s Services Executive Support team’s dedicated Bradstow consultation mobile number at 07779 868995 or email consult@wandsworth.gov.uk (please put ‘Bradstow Formal Consultation’ in the email heading’).

What happens next

Upon concluding the formal consultation stage, all views will be considered by Cabinet (November 2025) as to whether to proceed with the proposals. A decision may be called in for scrutiny within three working days of the decision being published.

Proposed consultation timeline: