We have approved an additional £3.174 million investment in Children's Services projects, helping to create more early years places, expand childcare provision and increase specialist support for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
The increase to the 2026/27 Children and Families Capital Budget was approved by Full Council on Thursday 16 July. The funding is fully supported by Government grants and developer contributions, meaning there is no change to the Council's net capital budget.
The investment includes £824,000 for two early years projects at Rainbows at St Andrew’s Primary and Stanbridge Lower School. Funded through Section 106 developer contributions and Department for Education (DfE) capital grant funding, the projects will increase both early years capacity and school-age childcare provision, supporting the national early years expansion programme.
A further £450,000 will be invested through the Early Years School-Based Nursery Capital Grant programme. Three maintained schools, Shefford Lower, Moggerhanger Primary and Mary Bassett Lower, have each been awarded approximately £150,000 in DfE funding to create additional nursery places and help meet growing demand for high-quality early years provision.
The largest element of the package, £1.9 million, will support the development and expansion of Additional Resource Provisions (ARPs) and specialist SEND provision across Central Bedfordshire.
The funding will be used to adapt, refurbish and enhance existing educational settings, creating additional specialist places and providing more local support for children and young people with SEND.
The investment forms part of our wider SEND sufficiency strategy, which aims to ensure more children can access the specialist support they need closer to home.
Our Executive Member for Children and Families, Cllr Gareth Mackey, said:
This investment is excellent news for children, young people and families across Central Bedfordshire.
By securing more than £3 million of external funding, we are able to increase early years and childcare capacity, while also expanding specialist SEND provision, without placing any additional pressure on the Council's budget.
These projects will help more children access high-quality early education, give families greater childcare options and ensure more young people with additional needs can receive the right support in the right place.
Creating opportunities for every child to reach their full potential is one of the council's key priorities, and this investment represents another important step towards delivering that ambition.
Work on the approved projects will be progressed during the 2026/27 financial year.