A THRIVING special school which moved from Blackburn to Darwen last year has revealed plans for an expansion at is new site.

Crosshill School wants to extend is sixth former block to create a new classroom, two life skill rooms, a larger staff office and a new tarmac playground.

In January 2022 it completed a £2million plus move from Blackburn Central High School to the vacant Sunnyhurst Centre in Salisbury Road, Darwen. providing extra places at both.

Its governors and the Champion Education Trust which runs both schools have applied for planning permission for the extension.

The move comes as Blackburn with Darwen Council's executive board prepares to debate a new strategy to increase the capacity of specialist school places in Blackburn with Darwen to support forecasted demand.

It involved Crosshill School, its Blackburn counterpart Newfield School in Old Bank Lane and the the creation of a new primary specialist school in the former Stansfeld Centre, Blackburn.

Crosshill's headteacher Lidia Gardner said: "We are excited and delighted at the prospect of working with the local authority to improve the facilities on our new site providing much needed space for children within Blackburn with Darwen.

"At the moment we are exploring the possibility of refurbishing and extending the final block at Crosshill to prepare for potential future development and growth."

A report to Thursday's executive board meeting by education boss Cllr Julie Gunn says: "Blackburn with Darwen has seen an increase in demand for specialist school places.

"From 2019/20 the number of pupils accessing out of borough placements has increased from 4.9 per cent to 6.4 per cent of pupils requiring a specialist school place.

"The percentage of pupils accessing specialist provision out of borough could be reduced if places were increased across Blackburn with Darwen.

"Initial designs have been completed at two of the borough’s existing specialist schools, and both have potential to accommodate expansions by means of extensions/reconfigurations of existing premises:

"• Newfield School: option to extend at each end of the existing complex needs school to provide six newly-formed class teaching spaces creating an additional 60 places for pupils aged four to 16; and

"• Crosshill School: option to reconfigure and refurbish the existing modular building adjoined to the main school or the former sports hall to create three newly-formed teaching spaces, creating an additional 30 places for pupils aged 11 to 16.

"In addition initial designs have been completed for the creation of a new primary specialist school in the former Stansfeld Centre, Blackburn.

"These premises require some minor reconfigurations and a full refurbishment to bring them back into operation as a small specialist school with up to six newly formed class/teaching spaces creating up to 60 new places."