Rayleigh’s and Wickford’s MP, Mark Francois, visited Pioneer Special School in Basildon, as part of his campaign to create a new special educational needs (SEN) school in South Essex.
Mark was shown around the school, which is part of the Academies Enterprise Trust (AET) by Headteacher Louise Robinson and AET’s Regional Director of Education, Melissa Heatherson.
During his visit, Mark saw a number of the specialist facilities at the school, including a hydro pool, a sensory room, an ‘interpretation room’ (in which students can be shown 360 degree videos and similar learning aids) and the much wider corridors and rooftop hoists, which are needed to accommodate wheelchair bound or other mobility challenged pupils.
As part of his campaign, Mark also paid a similar visit to Kingsdown Special School, in Southend, in March, led by Headteacher Louise Robinson and accompanied by Rayleigh Town Councillor, Cheryl Roe (who has strong links with the school).
Commenting on his visit to both schools, Mark said:
“Since I launched my campaign for a new South Essex SEN School, in the Commons last July, I have been on a learning journey about all things SEN-related. As part of this, I have now visited two Essex special schools, one in Basildon and one in Southend, to educate myself on what good really looks like in SEN School design. I am extremely grateful to both schools for their time and trouble- and I will now seek to incorporate the lessons from both visits into the new SEN School in Rayleigh, which is now due to open in the 2025/26 Academic Year.”
