12 July 2024 – Planning permission has now been granted for the new Inspire Academy

Medway Council’s planning committee has now granted planning permission for the new Inspire Academy, a SEND facility in Gillingham.

The Inspire Special Free School currently operates within the Parallel Learning Trust from a temporary site in Chatham that is reaching the end of its useful life.

This new development will be built on a Greenfields site, at the junction of Cornwallis Avenue and Yokosuka Way, and will provide education for secondary school and sixth form students.  It will cater for pupils with social, emotional and mental health problems (SEMH), aged 11-18 and will accommodate 160 pupils.  This is more than double the amount offered at the current site in Chatham, addressing the acute shortage of SEMH and ASD places in the local area.

Inspire Academy has been designed by JM Architects, with UBU crafted landscape .  Spanning across two floors, the school’s design emphasises the need for distinct, self-contained learning environments for each cohort while allowing shared access to sports facilities, specialist training areas, dining halls, and assembly halls.

It will also maximise shared facilities in the local community and will ensure the building operates at net zero carbon emissions.

Contractors ISG are hoping to have this project complete and in place by September 2025.