The Parks Nursery School was a flourishing and valuable provision for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in Oakham. However, in recent years academic research has led to better understanding of the best ways of teaching pre school children with SEND and Rutland County Council has responded by providing nursery settings with appropriate training and ongoing support.  As a result, demand for The Parks has dwindled and, for 2024-25, there were no applicants.  Meanwhile the number of children with SEND has increased and to support more children we decided to close The Parks and redirect the resource to supporting those children in mainstream nurseries and to enhance provision at Oakham CofE school (where The Parks was situated) for children of school age.  Closing The Parks was a difficult decision because it was a much loved facility but we do not have the money to keep it open and support the significantly increasing number of SEND children we are seeing.