Councillor Jonathan Hulley and Dave Euridge cut the ribbon to officially open the building

Surrey County Council has officially opened the newly-rebuilt  Fordway Centre, a state-of-the-art short-stay school designed to support primary-aged pupils who are finding it difficult to thrive in mainstream education settings.

The Fordway Centre offers a modern, inclusive, and nurturing environment for up to 24 pupils aged 5-11, with the aim of helping them re-engage with learning and, where appropriate, transition back into mainstream education.

The new building includes group rooms and calm spaces, as well as a large community kitchen and dining area, an activity room, and staff areas as well as a playground and multi-use games area (MUGA).

Part of the Inclusive Education Trust, the Fordway Centre supports children referred by the local authority following permanent exclusion or those at risk of exclusion.

Dave Euridge, trust chief executive, said: “These are some of Surrey’s most-vulnerable pupils and they have been educated in substandard buildings.

“They deserve so much more and so we celebrate the fact that our current and future pupils will receive an outstanding education in a setting that is designed and built with their personal and educational needs in mind.

“This new building will ensure the Fordway Centre will give an even better experience for all that need our support.”

With small class sizes (up to eight pupils), a high staff-to-pupil ratio, and a strong focus on emotional wellbeing, the school provides a calm and structured environment that fosters positive behaviour and academic re-engagement.

The newly-rebuilt Fordway Centre

The new two-storey building, delivered by Morgan Sindall Construction, represents a £6.05m investment as part of Surrey County Council’s wider £48.3m Alternative Provision (AP) Capital Programme.

The scheme aims to consolidate and modernise nine existing AP provisions into five high-quality sites, increasing capacity from 199 to 240 places across the county.

Surrey County Council is also investing £211m on its SEND Capital Programme.

This will expand the maintained specialist education estate by around 2,404 additional places by 2030 and improve existing facilities equivalent to 633 places.

Guy Hannell, Morgan Sindall Construction’s southern home counties area director, said: “It’s been an absolute pleasure to celebrate our delivery of the Fordway Centre with Surrey County Council, teachers, and pupils.

“This project is incredibly beneficial for Surrey’s community, supporting the next generation with specialised facilities that are tailored to the needs of pupils with additional learning requirements.

“We’ve thoroughly enjoyed continuing our relationship with Surrey County Council throughout this project and aligning with their net zero carbon in operation goals to deliver Fordway’s new building.

“We look forward to seeing pupils and the centre’s staff enjoy the new educational environment that’s been created.”

The project team also included Pick Everard, Holmes Miller, Turner & Townsend, and Vail Williams.