Behavioural needs centre in Hawick is earmarked for closure

The permanent closure of a centre for children and young people with behavioural needs in Hawick has been put on Scottish Borders Council’s agenda.

When members of SBC’s Education Sub-Committee meet next week they will be recommended to endorse the launch of a six-week consultation over a proposal for the closure of the Wilton Centre in Princes Street.

The centre has been temporarily closed due to the relocation of Social, Emotional and Behavioural Needs (SEBN) services to mainstream schools following the Covid pandemic.

A report to the committee also justifies the proposed closure due to the “unsuitable condition of the Wilton Centre building precluding it as a viable sustainable asset of the school estate without significant capital investment”.

The Wilton Centre – known locally as ‘The Arches’ – was closed in August 2021.

The report, from Lesley Munro, SBC’s director of Education & Children’s Services, states: “The Covid-19 pandemic resulted in the Wilton Centre’s doors being closed and to ensure continuation of service, the SEBN Service was reformatted to provide that service within the service users mainstream schools.

“The aim was also to provide a more inclusive service providing children with SEBN support within their existing school set up instead of requiring them to travel (sometimes excessively long distances) across the large Borders region to attend placements within the Wilton building in Hawick itself.

“The families of those attending the placements at that time were asked whether they agreed with this reformat proposal and their preference was that they concurred.

“They advised that they wished a far more inclusive service within their young people’s mainstream clusters schools rather than travelling to the Wilton Centre each day.”

The Wilton Centre had been regularly reviewed for the last 20 years and is deemed to require “significant investment to modernise it and make it fit for the modern age as an educational setting for the future”.

Turner and Townsend for Scottish Borders Council provided a suitability survey dated January 29, 2024, which rated the building as ‘D’. This is the lowest rating in terms of suitability.

If agreed, the consultation would be held from May 8 to June 28.