Council looks to 'modular' solution for expanding Send provision in Barnet

It comes after council warning that “existing provision is outstripped by projected demand”, reports Joe Ives, Local Democracy Reporter

A modular school building built by The Werner Group in Redcar, North Yorkshire (credit Google)

Urgent building works have been approved by Barnet Council to create “additional interim” school places for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (Send) by September.

On Thursday (11th) last week, John Anthony, the local authority’s executive director of children’s services, signed off on plans to set up such provision at the Queenswell Schools site in Whetstone to address the expected shortage of places.

The plans, which involve the commissioning of quick-build “modular” facilities, follows the council warning “existing provision is outstripped by projected demand”.

The council expects Oakleigh Junior School and Mapledown Secondary School to be oversubscribed from September 2026 onwards, according to a report prepared ahead of the decision.

The authority will now enter into a £3.65million contract paid for through grant funding from the Department for Education (DfE).

The contract is set to go to Wernick Buildings, part of The Wernick Group. The business, which had a reported turnover of more than £200m in 2024, describes itself as a group of companies specialising in the “sale and hire of permanent and temporary modular buildings, site accommodation and off-grid power solutions”.

Once the deal is signed, the “interim” measures will be delivered “over phases” with an initial phase “commencing immediately to meet the most urgent need for September 2026”. A second phase will be for September 2027 onwards.

Mapledown School, Queenswell Infant and Nursery School and Oakleigh School are set to house the facilities needed by this September. “Engagement with all three schools has been ongoing in relation to requirements and the proposed changes,” the council said in its report.

Mapledown School will see the construction of “five modular build classrooms, therapy spaces and associated staff and ancillary spaces”, including toilets. The council says these facilities will be “installed” on a disused playing field and former playground, which is separate from the mainstream school site.

One “modular build classroom” will be built on the early years playground at Queenswell Infant and Nursery School.

Oakleigh School, meanwhile, will see “minor internal reconfiguration of existing classrooms” to provide extra space as needed.

Rapidly growing need for special needs provision is not limited to Barnet. A Department for Education (DfE) report published by the government on the same day as the council’s decision revealed that the number of pupils with Send support had increased by 33% nationally since 2016, with a further 2.8% rise in 2025/26.

At the same time, government funding for local authorities providing Send places has lagged behind demand. Last year, London Councils warned that almost half of the capital’s local authorities were at “heightened risk” of bankruptcy due to insufficient government funding.

The cross-party group, which acts as a representative for every London council, warned that local authorities across the capital could be facing a cumulative budget deficit of £500m by the end of the 2026/27 financial year.

Last month Chipping Barnet Dan Tomlinson MP pledged to “fight” to ensure Barnet’s Send children get the “school places and government support they need”.

Last month Pauline Coakley Webb, the council’s cabinet member for family friendly Barnet, admitted that “the increasing complexity of needs among children with Send is placing unprecedented pressure on the mainstream and specialist systems”.

Cllr Coakley Webb added: “The data clearly demonstrate a growing cohort with highly complex autism, social emotional mental health, and multi-sensory needs who require specialist placements.

“Forecasts indicate that this demand will continue to rise over the next five years. We have invested significantly in strengthening mainstream inclusion through a well-developed local inclusion support offer, targeted early intervention pathways, and specialised packages.”

On its website, The Wernick Group says that “modular construction offers several advantages” for education providers, including “faster project timelines”, reduced on-site disruption and “predictable building dimensions and layouts”.

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