£500 million Hampshire education boost

Plans to deliver new school places, refurbish school buildings, and build new schools across Hampshire have been set out with an investment of £502m over three years.

The children and young people select committee supported Hampshire County Council’s children’s services capital programme on Wednesday (January 22nd), which will now be sent to the cabinet for approval.

Under the proposed programme, the council will deliver 3,175 new places at £175 million over the next three years, 2025/26 – 2027/28, as part of a total investment programme of £209m. 

However, the value of this programme is forecast to rise significantly beyond the three years of this report.

The capital programme also includes projects to extend and improve school buildings and facilities, such as refurbishing science laboratories or reconfiguring and improving accessibility at special schools. 

New schools and extension works will be delivered at a proposed budget of £389m. These include Luminous Oak in Eastleigh, Whiteley Secondary in North Whiteley and Newlands Primary Academy in Waterlooville.

Due to the increased demand for the service, around £40m will be allocated from the total budget to continue delivering the council’s special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) strategy.

New schools

New schools and extension works will be delivered under the proposed programme at a cost of £389m. 

In the upcoming years, schools and secondary schools at Hartland Village in Fleet, Manydown in Basingstoke, One Horton Heath in Eastleigh, Welborne in Fareham, West Waterlooville in Havant and North Whiteley in Winchester will be built and open between 2025 and 2028.

For example, the second school at the Aldershot Urban Extension (Wellesley) has been included in the programme and is due to open in September 2025, providing 420 additional places. 

Hounsome Fields Primary School is under construction in Basingstoke to accommodate 420 students. The school is being developed as a pilot project for responding to climate change, including an all-electric heating system, low-embodied carbon construction, and measures to improve its resilience to future climate challenges. It is due to open in September 2025.

Funding has also been allocated for a new modular classroom to mitigate accommodation pressures. The total amount of £9,22 million has been set aside for this purpose.

SEND strategy

The county council will continue with its SEND strategy to mitigate the impact of the increase in pupils with education health and care plans (EHCPs).

In December 2024, 17,731 pupils had EHCPs in Hampshire, an 11 per cent increase since September 2023 and a 346 per cent increase compared to the number of statements in 2015.

Under the strategy, 12 projects focusing on expanding the SEND provision in the county will be undertaken with a cost of £7.4 million.

Between 2025 and 2026, around 114 new school places will be created in Gosport, Fawley, Waterlooville, Fleet, Bordon, Southampton, or Winchester.

Two free special schools in Hampshire have been confirmed to be funded by the government.

One is a 135-place, co-educational school in Whiteley, Winchester (Windmill Academy), for children between four and 19 with severe learning Difficulties (SLD).

The second one is a 125-place school for children between eight and 16 years of age with social, emotional and mental health (SEMH) needs. The location of this school is yet to be decided.

The county council will work closely with the Department for Education (DfE) to agree on the final designation, design, programme and funding arrangements. 

For these schools, Hampshire Country Council is required to make land available on a long-term lease, with the DfE funding the capital costs, estimated to be around £18m per school. Further details will be discussed on a future decision day.

Early years

Hampshire County Council has been allocated £2.829m from the new Childcare Expansion Capital Grant to support the phased expansion of early years childcare provision for working parents of all children aged nine months to three years and the provision of 8am to 6pm wraparound care for primary-aged children.

Commenting on the proposed programme, executive lead member for children’s services Councillor Roz Chadd said: “This signals a major capital investment in our educational estate – and the future of Hampshire’s children – which if approved, will ensure that children in Hampshire continue to have access to good quality schools close to home.

“It is vital that as our county continues to grow, sufficient school places are available to meet both existing and future demand.”

The county council’s cabinet will consider the capital programme recommendations, which outline £502m of spending, on Tuesday, February 4th.