A SCHOOL has launched an ambitious bid to become one of the leading centres for children who have social, emotional and behavioural difficulties.

Lever Park Special School in Horwich unveiled its plans at a breakfast meeting for representatives from 15 businesses across Bolton.

The school is hoping the business community can help it to raise the £20,000 needed to achieve Social Emotional Behaviour Difficulties specialist status.

Project manager Carole Darbyshire said: “This is a very exciting time for the school. Only three years ago we were in special measures. Now the school is moving forward very fast and working to get the very best for our pupils and open up more opportunities for them.”

The bid for specialist status comes just weeks after Lever Park became the borough’s first Foundation Trust school.

This gives it greater independence and flexibility to meet the needs of its pupils as it is run by a charitable trust made up of outside partners.

The school’s foundation trust takes over in February and trust chiefs hope to lodge their bid for specialist status in March.

If the school is successful, it will receive a one-off Government grant of £100,000, followed by an additional £60,000 every year.

Mrs Darbyshire said: “The school has introduced a number of initiatives for pupils and their parents but we need extra funding to expand, for example, our vocational provision and evening classes for parents.”

Specialist status would allow the school to develop itself into centre of excellence for children with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties by recruiting staff and increasing resources available.

It would also expand the curriculum to include vocational courses and create a community allotment project. The school would also work with mainstream schools.

Mrs Darbyshire said: “We invited businesses not only to help us raise the money but to act as advisers or fundraisers."