Accelerating educational development, more than 600 permanent school places are set to be delivered in Surrey over the next two years, including provision for over 300 special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) students.

The expansion programme, which forms part of Surrey County Council’s five-year capital investment plan, is being supported by multi-disciplinary consultancy Pick Everard, and includes the delivery of five central projects across the region, with ten further projects in planning.

The largest of these is Hopescourt School in Walton-on-Thames, a 200-place all-through specialist school that is due to open in September 2025. Pick Everard worked closely with the school’s trust to develop the RIBA 2 concept design, which will be net zero in operation and utilise offsite construction methods to boost project efficiency.

The consultancy, which operates nationally on SEND school development, is also set to support Surrey County Council to deliver an additional 150 places at Hoe Valley Secondary School, alongside 25 places for key stage one and two children at Epsom Downs Primary School.

Walton Leigh School, at the former Hurst Park Primary School site, as well as St John the Baptist School SEN unit, will also deliver 60 SLD/ASD and 30 ASD places respectively.

Akram Hamouda, associate director at Pick Everard, said: “This is a huge undertaking, which sees Pick Everard align closely with the development need in the local area. Through our expertise in the educational sector and close stakeholder engagement on each of the projects, we’re now in a position to provide more than 600 new places for children in the community, who will be able to grow and learn in a safe, high-quality environment.

“These schools are also part of Surrey County Council’s Climate Change strategy, delivering sustainability benefits that work closely with the council’s ambition to be a net zero county by 2050. With adaptive design and close consideration of SEND requirements, our work with Surrey County Council is a great example of the way in which we create new spaces that are equipped to handle today’s challenges and look to the future.”

Through a contract signed under Crown Commercial Service’s (CCS) Project Management & Full Design Team Services Framework, Pick Everard has to date already helped Surrey County Council deliver over 200 school places in the county. This includes the development of Woking High School, an academy that provides specialist education for children with visual impairment needs, which was completed in March 2023.

In 2023, the school was part of 11 educational establishments in the Surrey area that provided more than 85 new Mainstream SEN Unit places.

Crown Commercial Service supports the public sector to achieve maximum commercial value when procuring common goods and services. In 2023/24, CCS helped the public sector to achieve commercial benefits equal to £4.9 billion, supporting world-class public services that offer best value for taxpayers.

Kieran Dyer, associate director at Pick Everard, said: “Education is one of the priority sectors we work across in the UK, delivering school projects that meet real local need and demand for pupil places. Local authorities are under incredible pressure to deliver such programmes, balancing everyday requirements with ever-tightening budgets and carbon-reducing mandates.

“We’re delighted to be part of Surrey County Council’s long-term vision in this respect, with a project focus that combines modern-day aesthetics with functionality and space-led initiatives at the forefront of our design plans. We’re looking forward to these spaces becoming real cornerstones of the community and accelerating educational development for years to come.”

Councillor Natalie Bramhall, Surrey County Council cabinet member for property, infrastructure and waste, said: “We are pleased to be working with Pick Everard to facilitate the delivery of our SEND Capital Programmes. Their designs and contribution support our commitment to increase sufficiency of specialist school provision in Surrey.”

Other specialist schools Pick Everard has been appointed to deliver include Pond Meadow School, Bramley Oak Academy, and Manor Mead School, which will collectively provide more than 150 places across Surrey.

For more information on Pick Everard and the services it provides, visit https://www.pickeverard.co.uk/.