Stockton-on-Tees Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision Sufficiency Statement 2026 to 2029

Early Years

High Flyers Early Support Nursery

Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council has a specialist early year setting co-located in one of its Family Hubs. This specialist provision provides specialist support for children who are pre-school and have complex needs identified in an Education, Health and Care Plan.

This setting also provides specialist outreach, advice and guidance to early years settings and school nurseries within the Borough.

SEND units and ARPs

Stockton-on-Tees has transitioned from the Enhanced Mainstream School (EMS) model to a more flexible and inclusive system of Additionally Resourced Provisions (ARPs) and Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) units from September 2025. These are located within mainstream schools.

Read about ARP and SEND units in the SEND Local Offer.

Special schools

Stockton-on-Tees currently has several special schools catering to a wide range of complex needs, including:

• Abbey Hill Academy for pupils aged 11 to 19 with learning difficulties and autism
• Abbey Hill Academy at North Shore Academy
• Westlands Academy for secondary pupils with SEMH needs
• Ash Trees Academy for primary aged pupils with physical and medical needs
• Ash Trees Academy at Billingham South - a hybrid specialist provision for primary aged children with moderate to severe learning difficulties
• Green Gates Academy specialist primary provision for children with social, emotional and mental health difficulties
• Northeast Autism Society - an Independent Special School catering for children who have neurodiverse conditions, such as Autism (this setting is from age four to 19 and offers a life skills curriculum
• Hartwell School - an Independent Special School catering for children from age four to 19 who have social, emotional and mental health difficulties and who display behaviours that challenge as a result of Autism
• King Edwin School - an Independent Special School catering for children from age eight to 16 who have social, emotional and mental health difficulties and associated anxiety
• The Bishopton Centre offering alternative provision for pupils at risk of exclusion

Alternative Provision and Pathway Development Centres

Stockton-on-Tees has a flexible commissioning framework in place for providers of alternative provision. Alternative provision is education arranged by local authorities for children of compulsory school age who, because of exclusion, illness or other reasons, would not otherwise receive suitable education. The framework includes a range of quality-assured providers offering services across key stage 3 and key stage 4, including academic qualifications, day-six exclusion education, and alternative curriculum and enrichment programmes.

In Stockton-on-Tees, Pathway Development Centres (PDCs) are a key part of the Alternative Provision (AP) system designed to support children and young people with SEND or Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH) needs.

PDCs are short term, needs led placements within education settings for pupils in Key Stages 1 to 4. Their purpose is to:

• provide a temporary, structured environment to assess individual needs
• identify appropriate pathways back into mainstream education or onward to specialist provision
• offer targeted support to help pupils re-engage with learning and improve outcomes
• support children to return to the most appropriate educational setting following a permanent exclusion