Although Delamere Forest no longer exists as an autonomous special needs school, Delamere Charitable Trust remains dedicated to supporting the education of the same client group, Jewish children with special educational needs.
 
Financially, we are still providing help to some of our ex-pupils.  In particular, we are contributing to the ongoing Jewish education of our Jewish day pupils who transferred to the Inscape Special Needs Schools and we are working with the Together Trust who operate those schools to provide that Jewish input, and also assisting the pupils to maintain their links with the local Manchester Jewish Community.  Other Jewish pupils who secure a place at the Inscape schools will participate in this initiative.
 
We are also in discussions with an after school club which we plan to help to grow its work in assisting some children struggling in mainstream schools, in a sympathetic and enjoyable environment, with acquiring the skills to cope better with the issues they face.
 
For the longer term future, we are convinced that the Manchester Community really needs, and can justify, a separate Special Educational Needs Unit for all Manchester Jewish schools.   We have joined with JADDS, a Manchester based parent support group for Jewish children with special needs, to promote the establishment of such a unit and to this end, we set up the Manchester Jewish Special Educational Needs School Unit Working Group, a cross community working group which started work in December 2011.  Members of the Group include representatives of leading communal organisations and several professional specialists experienced in this field
 
With help from The Fed, JADDS is currently conducting a detailed survey of these needs in the Manchester Community.  This will provide the research evidence to establish the need and to describe its parameters.  The Group is also researching local and central government attitudes and initial exploratory contacts with all the local Jewish educational establishments have also commenced.  We can’t yet predict exactly how this new Jewish SEN unit will work, what facilities will be provided for the young people, which schools will be involved, or how the public funding challenges will be overcome.  These are complex matters which need to be considered and negotiated carefully, with the support and involvement of all sections of the Manchester Jewish Community and the Local Education Authorities whose funding support will be needed.
 
With some imaginative thinking, and support from across the whole Jewish Community, the working Group can achieve its goal.  Indeed,  we have a duty to help these troubled children and their families.