Nottingham City Council has paid tribute to the work of a city school following a Ministerial visit today.
Councillor Sam Webster, Portfolio Holder for Business, Education and Skills, has welcomed the visit of Damian Hinds to Rosehill School, in St Ann’s.
The Secretary of State for Education was in Nottingham as part of a wider tour around the city and he was taken around the St Matthias Road school where he met pupils and staff.
Rosehill has been rated ‘Outstanding’ by Ofsted four times and supports pupils with autism aged between four and 19 years old.
Councillor Webster said: “Nottingham is an inclusive city where we want to see all pupils enjoy school and achieve their potential, whatever it may be that they choose to do next.
“Rosehill is a shining example of the outstanding provision here for children with learning difficulties and it’s encouraging that the Secretary of State chose to come here to see their hard work and efforts for himself. Pupils, parents, carers and staff should not underestimate the significance of the visit.”
He added: “Another of Nottingham’s special schools, Westbury, across the city in Bilborough is coming towards the final stages of a £4.75m council-funded expansion to create 60 additional primary and secondary places.
“This will further enhance the offer for parents in Nottingham and we continue to lobby Mr Hinds and his Government colleagues for the power to be able to build more outstanding learning environments like these, rather than only having the option to expand to meet rising demand for places.”
Cheryl Steele, acting headteacher at Rosehill School, said: “I’m delighted that the Minister came to visit our school and see the work we are doing around supporting children with autism.
“We are a four-time Outstanding-rated school and we appreciated having the chance to show Mr Hinds around, introducing him to our wonderful pupils, teachers and support staff.
“We are keen to discuss further any additional Government support which could be put in place to support children and young people with autism in Nottingham to help bring down barriers to securing training and employment.
“Nottingham is a very inclusive local authority area and we look forward to continuing to work closely with our education partners and colleagues to ensure the best outcomes for our children.”