Children and young people with special educational needs in Staffordshire may be able to get support closer to home if plans for a new all-age special school are approved.

Staffordshire County Council Cabinet will be asked to approve £28.6 million to deliver two new education projects, a primary Pupil Referral Unit in Stafford and a special school in Rugeley.

Funding for the projects would come from the "High Needs Provision Capital Allocation" (HNPCA) government grant.

Want to share your thoughts?

Families can share their opinions and help shape plans for the school.

An initial consultation is already open and will close on 17 July, click here to find out more.

If approved the special school in Rugeley would support boys and girls from reception age to secondary school who have social, emotional and mental health needs and Autism Spectrum Condition.

It would be built on the former Hagley Park Academy site and would be expected to open in September 2029, providing 180 school places.

The new school would help address the need for specialist education in the county and allow children to learn closer to home.

Cllr Janet Higgins, Staffordshire County Council's Cabinet Member for Education and SEND, said: "We want every child with SEND to get the right support at the right time, as close to home as possible.

"These new places will help more children and young people get the right help earlier, in the right setting, so they can settle, make progress and thrive."

"For families, it means better local support and more confidence that their child can get the education and care that is right for them."

The new primary Pupil Referral Unit in Stafford would provide places for 16 primary-aged children who need extra help outside mainstream school.

It would support pupils in the centre and north of the county to return to mainstream education where it is right for them.

Staffordshire County Council said: "The plans are part of the county council's work to create more local education places for children and young people with SEND and those who need alternative provision.

"Cabinet will meet to discuss the proposals on 15 July."