A PLAN to create a brand new Alternative Provision school in South Cumbria has been hailed as ‘an exciting time for education’.

Community leaders praised the proposals for a new 40-place school, which would support up to 25 young people with social, emotional and mental health needs, as ‘wonderful’.

If given the green light the site, on derelict land at Channelside, Barrow would be brought back to life.

County Cllr Sue Sanderson, cabinet member schools and learning was exited by how far they had come with the project. She said: “It’s the Cumbria County Council’s responsibility for education, and because of lots issues, we seem to get more children being excluded from schools and we wanted to build better provisions for them.

There are children who can’t cope in a mainstream setting or they can’t normally cope. We have pupil referral units in Carlisle that helps get pupils back into mainstream provisions. But this will help their emotional provision as well in the south of the county.”

As part of the planning application, a spokesman for Cumbria County Council said: “The council has been looking into suitable sites for alternative education since 2016.

“We identified two new places for alternative provision in education, one in Carlisle and one on a site in Barrow.

“The Barrow location will accommodate 40 pupils made up of 25 young people with social and emotional mental health needs.

“Our aim is to provide a genuine alternative curriculum and education experience for children and young people unable to access mainstream schools.”

Cllr Sanderson Is already looking ahead to the schools opening. She said: “We will be building two and possibly more. There are primary’s schools taking on the children with special emotional issues now also. It has got to go through planning for Carlisle and Barrow. Then once its approved then it will go ahead. With the Carlisle one going ahead first in 2021 then in 2022 the new wonderful one for Barrow.”

The Channelside site has been vacant since 1985.

It was later levelled and a promenade added to try and attract investors.

But despite this it failed to attract any interest from developers.