A NEW special school could soon be established in Keynsham, in a vacant building which was formerly a problem care home.

30 children with special educational needs and disabilities could attend school in the building which was once Charlton House Care Home. The large building, which adjoins the separate Hawthorn Care Home, has been vacant for two years.

Bath and North East Somerset Council voted to close Charlton House in 2024, just four years after it took over the running of the care home, after a damming 2022 Care Quality Commission report which found that people living there had suffered “avoidable harm.”

In deciding to close the home, the council said it would explore whether the building could be turned into a residential special school.

Now that is almost set to become a reality, after the council’s planning committee granted permission for the scheme on Wednesday, July 8 with a series of conditions attached. The development needs to commence within three years of the planning permission date.

A statement submitted with the planning application stated: “The redevelopment of the vacant Charlton House, a modern former care home in Keynsham, will create a high-quality and inclusive educational environment, allowing pupils to remain within their community while reducing reliance on costly out-of-area placements.”

A shortage of special schools in the Bath area means the council is spending £10m a year to transport children with special educational needs and disabilities to schools as far away as northern Oxfordshire. The new school will include specialist classrooms, therapy and sensory spaces, and “calm breakout spaces.”

In addition to the 30 places at the day school, the first floor will be converted into two self-contained children’s homes. Both homes will house four children with their own kitchen and dining room, lounge, and staff accommodation.