Interest in Dorset special school from outside county
It was set up for Dorset children with complex needs and learning challenges, but could accept a limited number from other councils.Mr Holder said it was currently focused on providing for "Dorset children first"."We haven't felt there is a lot of capacity to work with other local authorities just yet," he said.Chairman of the school board Ian Comfort said even though there was provision to take pupils from outside Dorset, a 20% limit had been set when the school was established.The former private school was bought for about £10m by Dorset Council, which nominates and pays for the majority of pupils.At the moment it can take about 150 children, although Ofsted has said the site could take up to 200. The long-term school business plan envisages the possibility of almost 250 pupils on the site, although this would require further capital investment.Dorset Council's children's social services executive director Paul Dempsey said there had been discussions about further capital projects at the school, but there was still some way to go before any firm proposals were made.
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