As part of the 21st Century Schools initiative, Conwy was successful in its bid for grant funding to build a new school for children with additional learning needs on the Ysgol Gogarth site. This provided an opportunity for the Education Department and Social Services to provide a new residential block for children and young people with disabilities in Conwy. The project has brought together two services – Llys Gogarth (onsite education residential provision for pupils attending Ysgol y Gogarth) and Tir Na Nog (registered Children’s Home, which provides a respite service to assist families).
The new combined residential service opened in October for children aged 7 to 19. The children and young people who use the service have a wide spectrum of physical disability and additional learning needs ranging from Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulties (PMLD) to Moderate Learning Difficulties (MLD) and Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD).
There are a number of benefits from combining the two services, one of which is to maximise the potential of this new purpose-built building, with specialist facilities onsite including a hydrotherapy pool, interactive sensory rooms, vocational hub, sports hall, specially designed outdoor play areas and a Learning Resource Centre. The location in Llandudno is also central with easy access to a range of community facilities e.g. cinema, swimming pool, shopping etc. Children who would have previously used Tir Na Nog no longer need to be transported from the school to an external unit at some distance in Kinmel Bay. The combined service also operates 52 weeks per year (previously Llys Gogarth’s residential unit was operational during school term time only).
The combined service also provides for closer multi-agency working. Staff continue to develop close links with families, Conwy’s Social Care Disability Service, Safeguarding, Speech and Language Teams, Applied Behaviour Analysts, Occupational Therapy and the Children and Adolescents Learning Disabilities Service (CALDS).
The service provides a caring, structured and homely environment, designed to meet the needs of each individual. The overall objective is to create the conditions for each child and young person to succeed to the maximum of their potential, to build personal and family resilience, to prepare for living as independently as possible and to have a fulfilling adult life.