Devon county councillors will today discuss hold ups in the construction of a special educational needs (SEN) school in Okehampton.

An unexpected rise in the cost of construction due to increasing demand on the construction industry and rising cost of materials means that the school building will now not be completed until spring 2023.

It had been hoped to open the school in September 2022.

A Devon County Council spokesperson said: ‘There’s been an increase in the estimated cost of our new special school in Okehampton as a result of the increased demand on the construction industry and the rise in the cost of raw materials.’

The county council’s Cabinet will consider a full report on this today (October 13).

The council spokesman added: ‘We are working to secure temporary accommodation to enable the school to open as planned.’

The school, which is being built in the Okehampton East Business Park at Higher Stockley Mead, will cater for 80-100 pupils aged between five to 16 with Social Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH) conditions.

It will help alleviate the current lack of provisions for the increasing number of children in the county requiring specialist support.

The council reported that Devon saw a 45% increase in the number of children issued an Educational Care and Health Plan between 2015 and 2019 which has resulted in the lack of state funded support and reliance on the Independent sector.

This has been attributed to demographic change, an increasing number of residents in the county and a rise in the number of children with more complex needs.

Currently, Devon only has 11 SEN schools, 16 specialist resource bases and one secure unit which are all at or nearing full capacity and are struggling to expand due to geographical and financial reasons.

Many of Devon’s existing SEN schools are not in easily accessible locations and pupils face long commutes and high transport costs in order to attend the schools.

The council’s £20m programme, which includes funding for the Okehampton SEN school, will provide 300 additional places across the county.

There are also plans to expand provisions in North and South Devon and new provisions have recently opened in Tiverton and Newton Abbot.