Harrogate and Knaresborough MP Tom Gordon has welcomed confirmation that Lighthouse School Harrogate will open in November following two years of delays.
The new specialist school, based at the former Woodfield Primary School site in Bilton, has moved a step closer to opening after Lighthouse Education Trust signed its funding agreement with the Department for Education.
The school was originally expected to open in September 2024, before being delayed to 2025 and subsequently pushed back again.
It is now due to welcome its first pupils in November, providing specialist education for autistic children and young people.
Mr Gordon, who has raised the delays with ministers in Parliament and held discussions with the Department for Education, said lessons should be learned from the process.
He said:
“While it's disappointing that families who were expecting the school to open in September will now have to wait until November, the important thing is after two years of waiting, SEND families finally have a concrete step forward.
“Parents have shown incredible patience while a brand-new, multi-million-pound school sat empty during a SEND crisis. We should never allow families to be put through that uncertainty again.
“Now let's celebrate getting the school's opening secured, while keeping the momentum going to ensure every child with SEND gets the education and support they deserve.”
Ahead of Parliament's summer recess, Mr Gordon challenged the Education Minister in the House of Commons over the delays, describing it as “beggars' belief” that the school had remained unopened while families sought specialist provision.
Lighthouse School Harrogate is expected to initially provide 24 places during the 2026/27 academic year, before growing to accommodate up to 80 students aged 11 to 19.
Mr Gordon is also inviting parents with questions about the school or wider SEND provision to attend constituency surgeries on Saturday 15th August.
He will be at Asda on Bower Road from 10.30am and Waitrose on Station Parade from 1.30pm.
Mr Gordon added: “As the school ramps up towards opening, I'll continue working with parents, the Lighthouse Trust and the Department for Education to make sure this transition is as smooth as possible.”
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